Azerbaijan, Baku, July 5 /Trend, E.Ostapenko/
NATO does not play a role in the process of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement, but one thing is clear that a military solution to the conflict can not be, and the only way to solve is diplomatic, NATO Secretary General's special representative for the Caucasus and Central Asia James Appathurai said today at a press conference in Baku.
This was Appathurai's first visit to Azerbaijan as a NATO special representative. He previously held the position of official representative of the Alliance and was appointed to the new post in November last year.
Appathurai's first to Azerbaijan in his new position was postponed twice.
Appathurai said he conducted many fruitful meetings in Baku, but the most productive was the meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.
"We are grateful to Azerbaijan for its contribution to efforts of the coalition in Afghanistan," said Appathurai. He said his meetings in Baku focused on further cooperation between the sides in specific spheres.
Appathurai said energy, cyber security and joint efforts in Afghanistan are the spheres of potential cooperation between NATO and Azerbaijan.
International coalition forces have been deployed in Afghanistan since 2001, when the U.S. launched the war against international terrorism. The coalition consists of 47 states, 19 of which are not NATO members.
A total of 90 peacekeepers of Azerbaijani Armed Forces serve as part of the international coalition in Afghanistan.
According to Appathurai, he held meetings at all major ministries of the country, during which the spheres of cooperation were discussed in detail.
Regarding the voting rights of NATO partner countries, the special representative said that all of NATO partner countries participating in NATO operations also participate in decision-making on these operations.
"I am leaving Azerbaijan with points on which the two sides have cooperation development prospects," he said.
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