Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb.19
Trend:
The trilateral meeting of Azerbaijani, Georgian and Turkish foreign ministers is a very fruitful platform of cooperation, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said in Tbilisi Feb.19.
"We have successful results of this cooperation in political, economic and other fields," said the minister, according to Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry.
Mammadyarov also emphasized the significance of regional projects and noted that the Southern Gas Corridor project is now beyond energy and element of development of the three countries.
"It is important to highlight that geographic location of our countries provides an ample opportunity to benefit from our countries' competitive transit potential," he said. "Therefore, I believe that developing transport infrastructure, and most importantly, interconnectivity and infrastructure in our geography should remain one of key areas of cooperation."
Further, Mammadyarov said that there are obstacles to peace and development in the region.
There is a need to respect the sovereignty, territorial integrity and inviolability of internationally recognized borders of states in the region, according to the Azerbaijani foreign minister.
Failure in the settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is the greatest threat to peace, stability in the region and regional cooperation, he added.
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 two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.