Azerbaijan, Baku, Feb. 8 / Trend /
Settling Syrian Armenians in the Azerbaijani occupied territories and the Armenian leadership's provocative statements on making flights from Khojaly airport cause significant damage to the conflict settlement and peace and stability establishment in the region.
Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Khalaf Khalafov relayed this at a meeting with a delegation headed by the EU Special Representative for Central Asia Patricia Flor.
Khalafov said that an unhelpful position demonstrated by Armenia in talks is a threat to regional security.
The deputy minister stressed that drug trafficking and terrorism in the Azerbaijani occupied territories are a threat to global stability stressing the need to increase pressure on Armenia by the EU and international community.
The sides have discussed cooperation between Azerbaijan and the EU, energy and transport projects, regional security, issues concerning the Caspian region and the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict.
Flor appreciated another visit to Azerbaijan and the existing multi-directional cooperation between Azerbaijan and the European Union.
Stressing confidence in expanding cooperation between the EU and Azerbaijan, Flor emphasised Azerbaijan's important role in developing relations between the EU and Central Asia. She also stressed Azerbaijan's important role in the energy security of Europe and the significance of the strategic energy partnership between the EU and Azerbaijan.
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 surrounding regions.