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1 December 2016

By Seba Aghayeva – Trend.Az

Armenia avoids the negotiations on the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said. Mammadyarov made remarks at a briefing in Baku Dec. 1.

"Yerevan has not yet responded to the France’s proposal to hold the 3+2 format meeting (three co-chairmen of the OSCE Minsk Group and Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers) in Hamburg,” he said. “It means that Armenia avoids the negotiations, rendering no support for the peace process."

Earlier, Mammadyarov said that Baku supports France’s proposal to hold the expected 3+2 format meeting on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in Hamburg.

While commenting on the statements of the Armenian side that Nagorno-Karabakh must be either independent or annexed to Armenia, Mammadyarov said that such statements play a negative role in the negotiation process, if Azerbaijan and Armenia talk about peace negotiations.

The minister said it is not a secret that the negotiations are held on the basis of the document which, first of all, points out that the Armenian armed forces must be gradually withdrawn from the occupied Azerbaijani territories.

As for the status of Nagorno-Karabakh region, Mammadyarov said that the Azerbaijani community must return to its native lands to determine the status.

"The status must not be discussed without the participation of the Azerbaijani community of Nagorno-Karabakh," he 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.