ARMENIAN, AZERBAIJANI FMS TO MEET IN THE HAGUE
15:01 â?¢ 18.03.14
Azerbaijan’s foreign minister has said that a new round of talks
with his Armenian counterpart is set to take place in Hague later
this month.
According to the Trend News Agency, FMs Elmar Mammadyarov and Edward
Nalbandian will meet on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit
(March 24-25).
The Azerbaijani official further unveiled a plan of the OSCE Minsk
Group’s visit to the South Caucasus region in April.
“We cannot negotiate forever; it is necessary to launch discussions
over a peace agreement,” Mammadyarov was quoted as saying.
The OSCE Minsk Group, composed of US, French and Russia co-chairs,
has been brokering the Nagorno-Karabakh peace talks since 1992.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus republics broke out in 1988
when the Armenian majority of the then autonomous region declared its
intention of breaking away from Azerbaijan. In a referendum held in
December, 1991 (days before the collapse of the USSR), the population
voted overwhelmingly in favor of independence (99.89%). The move
was followed by Azerbaijan’s large-scale military operations against
Nagorno-Karabakh and seven neighboring regions. The Ceasefire Accord,
which went into effect in May 1994, put an end to the armed attacks
in the conflict zone. Since 1992, the OSCE Minsk Group has been
spearheading the efforts towards reaching a negotiated settlement
between the conflicting countries.
Armenian News – Tert.am