Azerbaijan, Baku /corr. Trend S.Ilhamgizi / The Head of the Social-Political Department of the Executive Apparat of Azerbaijan President, Ali Hasanov, said that so-called 'presidential elections' in Azerbaijan's Nagorno-Karabakh region occupied by Armenia are unanimously condemned. The 'elections' Nagorno-Karabakh has not legal force and will be illegal unless Azerbaijan's state sovereignty is re-established and Nagorno-Karabakh population return to their Native Lands, Hasanov said, adding that the 'elections' are not recognized and are assessed as obstacle for the peaceful talks.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries appeared in 1988 due to Armenian territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenia has occupied 20% of the Azerbaijani lands including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and its seven surrounding districts. Since 1992 to the present time, these territories have been under Armenian occupation. In 1994, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a cease-fire agreement at which time the active hostilities ended. The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group ( Russia, France and USA) are holding peaceful negotiations.