Baku, Azerbaijan, Apr. 7
By Seba Aghayeva, Farhad Daneshvar - Trend:
The Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict should be resolved through negotiations on the basis of principles of international law, said Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.
He made the remarks at a press conference in Baku Apr. 7 dedicated to the results of a trilateral meeting of the Azerbaijani, Russian and Iranian FMs.
Zarif said he believes that discussions will be held further to make serious decisions.
After the press conference, speaking to reporters about the recent tensions in Karabakh, Zarif voiced his happiness over establishment of truce in the region.
He expressed hope that the ceasefire will last and its outcome will be serious talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
"From the outset of tensions in Karabakh, President Rouhani, Iranian defense minister and I had talks with Azerbaijani and Armenian officials regarding the issue," added Zarif.
On the night of April 2, 2016, all the frontier positions of Azerbaijan were subjected to heavy fire from the Armenian side, which used large-caliber weapons, mortars and grenade launchers. The armed clashes resulted in deaths and injuries among the Azerbaijani population.
Azerbaijan responded with a counter-attack, which led to liberation of several strategic heights and settlements.
Military operations were stopped on the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian armies on Apr. 5 at 12:00 (UTC/GMT + 4 hours) with the consent of the sides, Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry earlier said. Ignoring the agreement, the Armenian side again started violating the ceasefire.
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 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
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