Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 8
Trend:
Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov has met with France’s State Minister for European Affairs Harlem Desir, said Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Sept. 8.
The meeting was held during Mammadyarov’s working visit to France.
The parties exchanged views on the current substantive negotiations for settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. They emphasized the importance of speeding up the negotiations for the conflict’s settlement.
Mammadyarov noted that Azerbaijan always supports substantive and fruitful talks for the speedy settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
During the meeting, the parties expressed satisfaction with development of bilateral political, economic and cultural ties between Azerbaijan and France.
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.