Azerbaijan, Baku, May 18 / Trend S.Aghayeva /
Through the efforts of the diplomatic mission of Azerbaijan in the U.S. and Azerbaijani community of this country, attempts of the Armenians to achieve recognition by legislature of the state of Rhode Island of the so-called "Nagorno-Karabakh Republic" will be prevented, Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesman Elman Abdullayev told reporters on Friday.
The House of Representatives of Rhode Island passed a resolution urging the President and Congress to recognise the independence of the breakaway entity in the Nagorno-Karabakh, the Armenian media reported.
"The U.S. government at various levels has repeatedly stated it supports the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. Attempts to achieve recognition by the legislature of Rhode Island are only attempts of Armenians themselves, who thus try to deceive the U.S. public," Abdullayev said.
He said the Azerbaijani diplomacy in conjunction with the community will prevent these attempts, and inform the world community about the realities of Azerbaijan and the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
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. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - 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.