Azerbaijan, which is currently a developed country integrating into the world, has one problem – the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Turkey’s former foreign minister Hikmet Cetin told reporters in Baku, March 10.
Settlement of Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict will benefit not only Azerbaijan, but the entire region, according to Cetin.
“I believe that this conflict can be resolved through peaceful means,” said Turkey’s former minister, adding that Azerbaijan also wants to resolve the conflict peacefully.
“I hope that the major world powers, the UN will make necessary efforts to resolve this conflict,” Cetin 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 two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council’s four resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
Trend