He made the remarks in Baku at a joint press conference with OSCE chairperson, minister of foreign affairs of Germany Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
“For Russia, stability in the South Caucasus is very important,” said Mammadyarov. “Russia is our close neighbor and partner.”
He said that Baku positively assesses the meeting between Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev and Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan in St. Petersburg initiated by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“There is a certain document at the negotiating table over Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, and the work is being carried out on it,” said the Azerbaijani minister.
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.
Stability in S. Caucasus very important for Russia – Azerbaijani FM
30 June 2016
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Azerbaijan’s purchasing of weapons from Russia is explained by the fact that 20 percent of Azerbaijan’s territory is occupied, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said June 30.
