Armenia, Azerbaijan Urged To Resolve Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict

ARMENIA, AZERBAIJAN URGED TO RESOLVE NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT
Helena Bedwell

Bloomberg / Business Week

june 19 2012

The U.S., Russian and French presidents called for Armenia and
Azerbaijan to find a peaceful solution to their conflict over the
Nagorno-Karabakh region.

In a joint statement today from the Group of 20 meeting in Mexico,
Barack Obama, Vladimir Putin and Francois Hollande urged the two
former Soviet republics to fulfill a January commitment to accelerate
reaching a peace agreement. The U.S., Russia and France chair the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s so-called Minsk
Group, which mediates on the dispute.

“The parties to the conflict should not further delay making
the important decisions necessary to reach a lasting and peaceful
settlement,” the leaders said. “As evidence of their political will,
they should refrain from maximalist positions in the negotiations,
respect the 1994 cease-fire agreement, and abstain from hostile
rhetoric that increases tension.”

Energy-rich Azerbaijan fought a war with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh,
a mostly ethnic Armenian-populated region that broke free of Baku’s
control after the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991. While
the hostilities largely ended after a Russia-brokered cease-fire in
1994, the countries have failed to reach a peace agreement.

Five Armenian soldiers were killed and two were wounded during an
exchange of fire with Azeri troops this month, while five Azeri
soldiers died during a border clash with Armenian troops, Defense
Ministries of both nations said June 6.