Azerbaijan, Baku, Sept. 13 / Trend M. Aliyev /
Azerbaijani MPs have expressed support for the appointment of the special representative of the UN Secretary-General for the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
"The presence of such a representative could play a certain role in the constant awareness of UN about the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and reminding Armenia that it is important to consider international law in addressing the problem," MP Aydin Mirzazade told Trend.
The UN must appoint a special representative for the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Vaira Vike-Freiberga, the president of Latvia from 1999 to 2007 and special envoy to the UN Secretary General and Vice-Chairman of the Group of Experts on the long-term development of the European Union, told media in Baku today.
She said that the appointment of a special representative could accelerate the settlement of the conflict.
The UN special envoy was set to be appointed when the OSCE Minsk Group was created and given a specific mandate to resolve Armenia-Azerbaijan conflicts in 1992, MP Zahid Oruj told Trend.
"The OSCE has not conducted any work to resolve conflicts in the region in the recent past," Oruj added.
Oruj said the model that the OSCE Minsk Group put forward and approved should be guaranteed through the UN in the future.
"The creation and deployment of peacekeeping forces, the exact format of their activities, the timing of their visit - everything is in the power of UN which is responsible for ensuring the security of the world," Oruj 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 the peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.
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