Azerbaijan, Baku, March 11 / Trend , U. Sadikhova /
If the U.S. Congress discusses such an outdated incident, it must also assess issues that occurred 20 years ago, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said.
"From this point of view, I do not think that the recent discussions in Congress can lead to stability and peace in the region," the minister said at a Caspian Sea security meeting in Baku.
Mammadyarov said if Congress discusses peace in the Caucasus, then real circumstances and the fact that 20 percent of Azerbaijani territories are under Armenian occupation must be considered.
The U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee adopted a resolution recognizing the so-called "Armenian Genocide." The resolution was adopted with 23 votes for and 22 votes against.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 surrounding districts. Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - Russia, France, and the U.S. - are currently holding the peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh region and the occupied territories.