Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

NATO official said the organization supports the Minsk process over the resolution of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, as the Alliance does not take part at the negotiations.

James Appathurai, NATO Secretary General's Special Representative for the South Caucasus and Central Asia said NATO does not have a role in the peace process for the settlement of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

“I do not think a distinct NATO role would help the process ahead, rather to the contrary. NATO supports the Minsk process,” Appathurai told Trend on January 23.

He added that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict does receive high-level international attention, most recently when President Francois Hollande of France hosted talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

On the initiative of President Hollande, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan held a meeting on October 27 with the participation of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmen to discuss the settlement process of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Appathurai further said the Minsk Group is co-chaired by the U.S, France and the Russian Federation and their engagement has been continuous over two decades.

Peace talks over the long-lasting Nagorno-Karabakh conflict that emerged over Armenia’s territorial claims against Azerbaijan are underway on the basis of a peace outline proposed by the Minsk Group co-chairs and dubbed the Madrid Principles. However, as Armenia continues to follow non-constructive position, the negotiations have been largely fruitless so far despite the efforts of the co-chair countries over 20 years.

Armenia captured Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding districts from Azerbaijan in a war that followed the Soviet breakup in 1991. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and nearly 1 million were displaced as a result of the war.

Large-scale hostilities ended with a Russia-brokered ceasefire in 1994 but Armenia continued the occupation in defiance of four UN Security Council resolutions calling for immediate and unconditional withdrawal.

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Sara Rajabova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @SaraRajabova

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