Azerbaijan, Baku, Oct.31 / Trend, S. Agayeva /
The Armenian leader biologist and geneticist Shavarsh Kocharian is still attempting to mislead his country and the international community by making a laughing-stock of itself, Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesman Elman Abdullayev told Trend on Monday commenting on the Armenian Deputy Foreign Minister's statement about the necessity to continue work on 'updated Madrid principles'.
"It is gratifying to hear that Armenia has finally decided to accept the updated Madrid principles, but whilst the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs submitted this document to Azerbaijan and Armenia in November 2009 only now, after so much time, Armenia announces that it accepts them," Abdullayev said.
Azerbaijan offered Armenia to postpone discussions over the basic Madrid principles of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict resolution and start working directly on the development of a comprehensive peace agreement.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 per cent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994 and the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group which are 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 the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.
According to Abdullayev, the Azerbaijani side's proposal to start work on a great peace agreement indicates the country's desire to resolve the conflict as soon as possible.
He said: "Everything is clear that the Armenian leadership is not concerned about its image within the world community and especially its people who have been brought to the poverty level and yet attempts once again to cross out all the efforts of the sides, the international community and especially the OSCE Minsk Group. Our proposal to develop a great peace agreement within a specific time indicates our desire to resolve the conflict as soon as possible.
"Kocharian with his biological and genetic fantasies and delusions is not talking about resolving the conflict, but attempts to satisfy the ultra-nationalist circles of Armenia, which not only harms the peaceful settlement of the conflict, but also creates a maze. Unfortunately, he is good at dealing with these circles," Abdullayev said.