Baku, Azerbaijan, April 23
By Matanat Nasibova - Trend:
Germany supports the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group on the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and stands for a peaceful settlement of the long-lasting problem, German Ambassador to Azerbaijan Michael Kindsgrab said, Trend reports April 23.
The ambassador noted that Germany declared the inadmissibility of maintaining the status quo in this issue and considers continuation of the negotiation process important.
“Germany believes that meetings at the highest level between the heads of the conflicting states are necessary and the intensive nature of these meetings is important,” he said. “The results of the recent meetings at the level of the heads of state of Azerbaijan and Armenia, as well as the foreign ministers of the two countries showed the parties’ readiness to continue the political dialogue towards resolving the conflict, and this is a positive fact, which is welcomed by the German government. We support the mediation mission of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs aimed at the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.”
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.