Details added (first version posted on 18:55)
Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 4
By Ilkin Shafiyev - Trend:
The status quo in the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is unacceptable, German Ambassador to Azerbaijan Michael Kindsgrab told reporters in Baku Oct. 4.
He was speaking at a reception dedicated to the Day of German Unity.
Germany has always been a supporter of resolving the conflict peacefully, he noted, adding that Germany welcomes every step in this direction.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel raised this issue during her visit to Azerbaijan, and there were many discussions, he said.
Merkel noted that opportunities are being considered about how Germany can support the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs, Kindsgrab said. A new format is not the case, Germany can support the existing format, said the ambassador.
He noted that the relations between Baku and Berlin are developing in the political, economic and cultural spheres.
Azerbaijan and Germany cooperate at the level of parliaments and governments, he said.
Germany supports the Southern Gas Corridor project, and there is the German-Azerbaijani Chamber of Commerce, he noted.
Economic ties are growing, strengthening, and the German investments in Azerbaijan are growing, he said.
In addition, interest in the German language is growing in Azerbaijan, and the Goethe Cultural Center began operating not only in Baku, but also in the districts last year, the ambassador said.
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.
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