U.S. SAYS 'DEEPLY COMMITTED' TO AIDING PEACEFUL SETTLEMENT TO NAGORNO-KARABAKH
AzerNews, Azerbaijan
April 9 2013
By Sara Rajabova
The U.S., a co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group brokering settlement
of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh, has said
it remains deeply committed to working with the sides to achieve a
peaceful solution.
"We believe that the use of force will not resolve the conflict,
and we call upon all parties to refrain from the use or threat of
use of force," US State Department acting deputy spokesman Patrick
Ventrell told journalists Monday while commenting on US Secretary of
State John Kerry's visit to Turkey.
During his visit to Turkey, Secretary Kerry and Turkish Foreign
Minister Ahmet Davutoglu discussed the strengthening of the OSCE
Minsk Group's activity and the liberation of the Armenia-occupied
territories of Azerbaijan.
"The Minsk process should be provided with an ever-increasing momentum
and the invaded territory of Azerbaijan is an issue that we need
certain advancement within," Davutoglu said after the meeting. He
added that Turkey and the U.S. will continue to touch on those issues
in the future.
The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict emerged in 1988 when Armenia made
territorial claims against the neighboring country. Since a lengthy
war between the two South Caucasus countries that displaced over
a million Azerbaijanis and ended with the signing of a precarious
cease-fire in 1994, Armenian armed forces have occupied over 20 percent
of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including the
Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
Peace talks brokered by Minsk Group co-chairs representing the United
States, Russia and France have been largely fruitless so far.
The negotiations are underway on the basis of a peace outline proposed
by the Minsk Group co-chairs and dubbed the Madrid Principles, also
known as Basic Principles. The document envisions a return of the
territories surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh to Azerbaijani control;
determining the final legal status of Nagorno-Karabakh; a corridor
linking Armenia to the region; and the right of all internally
displaced persons to return home.
AzerNews, Azerbaijan
April 9 2013
By Sara Rajabova
The U.S., a co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group brokering settlement
of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh, has said
it remains deeply committed to working with the sides to achieve a
peaceful solution.
"We believe that the use of force will not resolve the conflict,
and we call upon all parties to refrain from the use or threat of
use of force," US State Department acting deputy spokesman Patrick
Ventrell told journalists Monday while commenting on US Secretary of
State John Kerry's visit to Turkey.
During his visit to Turkey, Secretary Kerry and Turkish Foreign
Minister Ahmet Davutoglu discussed the strengthening of the OSCE
Minsk Group's activity and the liberation of the Armenia-occupied
territories of Azerbaijan.
"The Minsk process should be provided with an ever-increasing momentum
and the invaded territory of Azerbaijan is an issue that we need
certain advancement within," Davutoglu said after the meeting. He
added that Turkey and the U.S. will continue to touch on those issues
in the future.
The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict emerged in 1988 when Armenia made
territorial claims against the neighboring country. Since a lengthy
war between the two South Caucasus countries that displaced over
a million Azerbaijanis and ended with the signing of a precarious
cease-fire in 1994, Armenian armed forces have occupied over 20 percent
of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including the
Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
Peace talks brokered by Minsk Group co-chairs representing the United
States, Russia and France have been largely fruitless so far.
The negotiations are underway on the basis of a peace outline proposed
by the Minsk Group co-chairs and dubbed the Madrid Principles, also
known as Basic Principles. The document envisions a return of the
territories surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh to Azerbaijani control;
determining the final legal status of Nagorno-Karabakh; a corridor
linking Armenia to the region; and the right of all internally
displaced persons to return home.