Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 3
By Anakhanum Hidayatova - Trend:
The OSCE Mink Group co-chairmen will visit the region in the nearest future, James Warlick, the OSCE Minsk Group US co-chairman, told Trend Feb. 3.
Warlick said that the Co-Chairs are considering a visit to the region in the near future in order to pursue next steps following the meeting of the Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents in Switzerland.
"We continue to believe that such dialogue is necessary to bring about a lasting peace," he said.
The Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents held a summit Dec.19 in Bern under the auspices of the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
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