Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 19
Trend:
Azerbaijani and Armenian armies are standing face-to-face on the front line and resumption of the war at any moment is not ruled out, Azerbaijani Defense Minister, Colonel General Zakir Hasanov said.
Hasanov made the remarks at a meeting in Baku Feb. 19 with a delegation headed by the European Union Special Representative for the South Caucasus and Crisis in Georgia Toivo Klaar.
The current situation on the front line was discussed during the meeting.
Hasanov once again reminded that Azerbaijan’s territories recognized by international community are still under Armenia’s occupation.
The Azerbaijani minister added that negotiations are still unsuccessful.
He added that instead of investigating the consequences of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, it would be better for international structures to remove the causes of its emergence by making every effort to fully resolve the conflict.
Noting the importance of speedy and peaceful settlement of the conflict to ensure stability in the South Caucasus, Klaar stressed that the European Union supports continuation of negotiations.
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.