Interfax, Russia
Nov 30 2012
Azerbaijan: Armenia must sign peace deal as condition for
Nagorno-Karabakh settlement
BAKU. Nov 30
Azerbaijan's foreign minister said on Thursday that Armenia must sign
a peace agreement with Azerbaijan in trying to settle the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict if it accepts the proposals of the Minsk
Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
Elmar Mammadyarov made the point at a meeting with the European
Union's special representative for the South Caucasus and the crisis
in Georgia, Philippe Lefort.
The minister also argued at the meeting that Armenia's plan to open an
airport in the Nagorno-Karabakh city of Khojaly (Xocali) would impede
efforts to settle the conflict. He added that the Minsk Group
co-chairs shared this stance.
He said Armenia's military occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh and
surrounding Azeri areas is the only obstacle to settling the conflict.
Lefort called for dialogue between Nagorno-Karabakh's ethnic Azeri and
Armenian communities, arguing that it would be an important component
of efforts to establish lasting peace.
He and Mammadyarov expressed satisfaction with current relations
between Azerbaijan and the EU. They also discussed energy projects
significant for the region.
Nov 30 2012
Azerbaijan: Armenia must sign peace deal as condition for
Nagorno-Karabakh settlement
BAKU. Nov 30
Azerbaijan's foreign minister said on Thursday that Armenia must sign
a peace agreement with Azerbaijan in trying to settle the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict if it accepts the proposals of the Minsk
Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
Elmar Mammadyarov made the point at a meeting with the European
Union's special representative for the South Caucasus and the crisis
in Georgia, Philippe Lefort.
The minister also argued at the meeting that Armenia's plan to open an
airport in the Nagorno-Karabakh city of Khojaly (Xocali) would impede
efforts to settle the conflict. He added that the Minsk Group
co-chairs shared this stance.
He said Armenia's military occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh and
surrounding Azeri areas is the only obstacle to settling the conflict.
Lefort called for dialogue between Nagorno-Karabakh's ethnic Azeri and
Armenian communities, arguing that it would be an important component
of efforts to establish lasting peace.
He and Mammadyarov expressed satisfaction with current relations
between Azerbaijan and the EU. They also discussed energy projects
significant for the region.