Azerbaijan, Baku / Trend, I. Isabalayeva /
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan's statement in an interview with "Russia 24" on Thursday that Nagorno Karabakh will never become part of Azerbaijan, was designed for the domestic audience, Azerbaijani Parliament's First Vice-Speaker Ziyafat Asgerov told Trend.
"Armenia has repeatedly voiced similar views. Sargsyan is saying this mainly for the domestic audience, though he knows the Nagorno-Karabakh status is not an issue in negotiations. The OSCE Minsk Group has confirmed that Nagorno-Karabakh is an integral part of Azerbaijan," Asgerov said, and that Armenia recognizes it as well.
"They just make inadmissible suggestions concerning its status. Our position is that the highest status of autonomy that exists in the world can be granted to Nagorno-Karabakh within Azerbaijan. There is no problem in this matter from our side. They create the problem. When and how they will agree to a compromise is their business," Asgerov said.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994.
The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - Russia, France, and the U.S. - are currently holding peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.