Russia, Moscow, Sept.23 / Trend A.Gasimova /
Chairman of Russia's State Duma Committee on CIS Affairs and Relations with Compatriots Alexei Ostrovsky believes the international public opinion over the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict is on the side of Azerbaijan.
"The whole world, including the Russian Federation, supports the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan," Ostrovsky said at the meeting with journalists from the South Caucasus in Moscow on Thursday.
"No one, but Russia is not trying to settle the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Moscow is interested in resolving the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, since both sides are its strategic partners," he said.
Ostrovsky said Russia can not resolve this conflict, while Armenia and Azerbaijan themselves do not want to. "Russia is actively trying to reconcile the conflicting parties. The Russian leader is trying to reconcile Yerevan and Baku, and the Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents' meeting held upon our leader's initiative is evidence to it," Ostrovsky said.
Both countries' societies obstacle resolving the problem, Ostrovsky noted with regret. "Powerful forces inside Armenia will never agree to return the occupied territories of Nagorno-Karabakh. In turn, Azerbaijan will never make concessions," he 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 7 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 U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.
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