BAKU, Azerbaijan, February 23. Russia provides consistent assistance to Azerbaijan and Armenia in developing the parameters of a peace treaty, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin said in an interview with TASS, Trend reports.
"Russia is making targeted efforts to normalize relations between Baku and Yerevan. They are based on a set of trilateral agreements at the highest level from 2020 through 2022, envisaging a number of priority measures, including the opening of transport links between the two countries, the delimitation of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, and the development of contacts through civil society,” Galuzin noted.
“We provide consistent assistance to the parties in the development of a peace treaty. These steps should lead to the creation of conditions for a lasting, sustainable and just peace in the region, which will be a reflection of the peace agreement," the deputy minister also said.
"Our mediation is to ensure a constructive and meaningful dialogue in order to find mutually acceptable solutions that take into account the interests of both sides,” he stated. “For these purposes, the special representative of the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs [Sergey Lavrov] for the normalization of Armenian-Azerbaijani relations [Igor] Khovayev makes regular trips to Yerevan and Baku (the latest trips took place on February 9-10 and February 14-15, respectively).”
“We also conveyed to our partners Russian considerations on the basic principles and parameters of the peace process, taking into account the approaches of the parties,” he added.
Previously, Russia's Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that the country considers freezing of talks on the normalization of Azerbaijan-Armenia relations counterproductive.
“We will provide all the necessary support in holding the regular meetings of the trilateral working group co-chaired by the deputy prime ministers [of Azerbaijan, Armenia and Russia] for unblocking economic and transport ties in the region and the commission on the Azerbaijan-Armenia border, as well as new negotiating rounds on a peace treaty at the level of foreign ministers,” she noted.
Meanwhile, in December 2022, Armenia disrupted the regular round of the trilateral meeting between Azerbaijani, Armenian and Russian foreign ministers in Moscow.