Baku, Azerbaijan, May 23
Trend:
Azerbaijan and Israel discussed the issues of nuclear safety and reiterated that all the countries have the right to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry told Trend May 23, commenting on the Deputy FM Araz Azimov's visit to Israel.
During the visit, Azimov met with the Israeli foreign minister, representatives of the country's parliament and state bodies.
The meetings discussed topical issues of cooperation between Azerbaijan and Israel, as well as problems of the Middle East and South Caucasus.
The Israeli side was informed about the fact that Armenia's Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant poses a threat to both Azerbaijan and the entire South Caucasus.
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.