Putin confirmed his devotion to the Minsk process

Putin as mediator between the warring Azerbaijan and Armenia achieved an end to the war on November 9 by deploying troops to Karabakh; after that, most of the public in both warring parties think about the possibility of the formation of a new format of settlement and the loss of control over the situation by the OSCE Minsk Group. ...

Putin himself clarified this important geopolitical issue, noting that in all its actions Russia tried to follow the key developments achieved by the OSCE Minsk Group. According to him, the Russian side continues to check its actions with partners and the head of the Minsk Group.

Putin's words have a ground. Before the meeting, he discussed the agenda of negotiations with the President of France, one of the three co-chairs of the Minsk Group, and agreed on tactical and medium-strategic steps of the co-chairs, including the United States, which are still busy forming the new administration in Washington.

The fact that the negotiations will continue in the Minsk format confirmed also the Prime Minister Pashinyan, who publicly stated after the meeting that Armenia is ready to continue negotiations within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmanship.

Such negotiations could begin in February based on the results of the visit of the co-chairs to the region in mid-December. They concluded that it was necessary to continue the process based on the new realities in the near future.

The issues of unblocking transport communications and opening the borders, which became the content of the final statement of this meeting, can be regarded as steps to prepare peoples for peace, because the opening of transport communications is an important element in establishing trust and working atmosphere. However, the governments of the three countries plan to develop projects to unblock the tracks within a month and a half.  During this time, the parties will have to resolve another important issue of great interest for Azerbaijan - the complete withdrawal of the Armenian armed forces from Karabakh.

Pashinyan complained that he did not manage to resolve the issue of releasing the prisoners of war. The talk is about a large group of Armenian military who entered Karabakh after the official end of the war. According to the November 9 Statement, the parties pledged to release all prisoners of war, and it was done. Those who later entered the territory of Azerbaijan do not fall under the status of prisoners of war, since the law does not have retroactive effect, and therefore they cannot be released according to the Statement.

Recently, Aliyev has expressed dissatisfaction with the actions of the peacekeepers, who do not prevent the arrival of the military from Armenia to Karabakh. Aliyev is trying to get assurances from Yerevan to stop this practice. Fortunately, he had allies in Armenia. Previously, the parents of military personnel in Armenia attacked military enlistment offices and demanded not to send their children to Karabakh. Most likely, this issue will be resolved before March 1, when the deputy prime ministers will present an action plan to unblock communications. The heads of the secret services of Armenia and Azerbaijan have had two rounds of talks on prisoners of war.  After the Moscow meeting, the questions on the fate of prisoners of war and the final withdrawal of the Armenian Armed Forces from Karabakh can be resolved more positively than before when Putin, Aliyev and Pashinyan held talks at the egg-shaped table in Kremlin.