Baku, Azerbaijan, Apr.7
By Leman Zeynalova - Trend:
It is necessary to redouble, or triple the efforts to resolve the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, said Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov in an interview with TRT World.
He noted that the situation on the line of contact is not so good. Armenia violates the ceasefire much often, said the foreign minister.
“We call it sporadic shootings. More serious clashes can be started after this sporadic shootings. Trenches on the line of contact are very near to each other. Sometimes the distance between the trenches is less than 100 meters. Of course, that is a huge danger.” he said. “I don’t think that diplomacy is exhausted. But we need to redouble, or triple our efforts.”
The minister noted that in order to achieve the conflict’s settlement, first of all Armenian troops should be withdrawn from Azerbaijan’s occupied territories.
“We have agreed to seriously intensify the negotiations after the completion of electoral processes in Azerbaijan and Armenia. At the end of the story we will bring some result. We expect it to be a just result. Because the international law is on the side of Azerbaijan,” Mammadyarov 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 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.