Azerbaijan, Baku, 7 March / Trend corr. K.Ramazanova / NATO is concerned with restoring the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh after the violation of the ceasefire agreement on the contact line, Robert Simons, NATO Special Representative in South Caucasus, stated to journalists on 7 March.
"We are concerned with the violation of the ceasefire agreement and it is one of the most serious incidents recently,' Simons said.
The conflict between the two countries of the South Caucasus began in 1988, due to the Armenian territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since 1992, the Armenian Armed Forces have occupied 20% of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and its seven neighbouring districts. In 1994, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement which ended the active hostilities. The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group ( Russia, France, and the US) are currently holding the peaceful negotiations.
The long-term violation of the ceasefire agreement on the Armenian-Azerbaijani contact line began on 4 March. Both parties suffered loss of life and injuries.
Simon noted that NATO hopes that the current events will not affect the negotiations within the framework of the Minsk Group.
NATO is concerned with the events taking place in Yerevan and is observing the situation.