Azerbaijan, Baku, 2 February / corr. Trend E. Huseynli / Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict is delayed due to the non-constructive position of Armenia and several European countries demonstrate double standards concerning its regulation, Safar Abiyev, the defense minister of Azerbaijan and colonel-general said during his meeting with Alayna Guidetti, the ambassador of the Switzerland Confederation to Azerbaijan.
The conflict between the two countries of the South Caucasus began in 1988 due to Armenian territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since 1992, Armenian Armed Forces have occupied 20% of Azerbaijan including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and its seven surrounding districts. In 1994, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement at which time the active hostilities ended. The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group ( Russia, France, and the US) are currently holding peaceful negotiations.
According to minister, the double standards of the European countries concerning the solution of the conflict are not admissible. Aggressor should be called by its name. " Azerbaijan prefers peace negotiations. However if there is no concrete results, we are able to liberate our land by all means, even by a war," the minister added.
Safar Abiyev received also Lyu Kvang-Chul, the ambassador of Korea to Azerbaijan on 2 February. During the meeting the minister stressed that 20% of the Azerbaijani lands have been occupied by the Armenian Armed Forces and more than 1 mln people were deported from their lands and the historical and cultural monuments were destroyed.