Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 15
Trend:
Azerbaijan welcomes statement of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on step by step resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,said Hikmat Hajiyev, Spokesperson of the Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan.
"The Azerbaijani side welcomes the statement of Sergey Lavrov, the Foreign Minister of Russian Federation on step by step resolution of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict," Hajiyev said.
Earlier, Lavrov said that the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict can be settled only by the conflict parties.
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.