Mammadyarov: Azerbaijan Ready to Provide High Level of Self-government to Nagorno-Karabakh

Baku / 25.12.18 / Turan: Baku is ready to provide Nagorno-Karabakh with a high level of self-government within the internationally recognized borders of the Azerbaijan Republic. This was stated by Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov in an interview with a number of media.

Regarding the Karabakh settlement, he noted with regret that the negotiations held over the years did not produce results.

"But the recent events taking place in Armenia, as well as the talks that took place between the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia on the margins of the CIS summits in Dushanbe and St. Petersburg, as well as my 3 meetings with my Armenian counterpart give grounds for a certain optimism in terms of promoting the negotiation process," said Mammadyarov.

At the same time, he drew attention to the fact that the joint statement by the heads of the delegations of the countries co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group and the heads of the Foreign Ministries of Azerbaijan and Armenia dated December 6, adopted in the framework of the OSCE Ministerial Council in Milan, reflected "reaching an agreement to continue negotiations on a just and lasting settlement conflict by peaceful means."

"And this means that the format of negotiations remains unchanged. The document also reflects the call for compliance with the agreement reached in Dushanbe at the level of the leaders of the two states and for taking concrete steps to prepare the people of both countries for peace. Another important point is that the joint statement reflects the idea of ​​the need to conduct intensive results-oriented negotiations in the near future at the level of Azerbaijan"s and Armenia"s leadership in order to encourage a just and lasting settlement. I would like to point out that this approach is fully supported by the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs," Mammadyarov continued.

According to the Azerbaijani minister, "after the elections held in December of this year, the current leadership, which received a full-fledged mandate from the people of Armenia, must demonstrate political will towards resolving the conflict and act in the name of achieving peace, stability and sustainable development in the region, in line with the good-neighborliness philosophy."

He expressed hope that "in the coming 2019, certain progress will be achieved in terms of the withdrawal of the Armenian armed forces from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan and the normalization of relations between the two countries." "Progress in resolving the conflict, creating conditions for peace, security and stability in the entire region, primarily opens up opportunities for economic growth in Armenia itself. Our country, in the same way as it ensures the safety of its citizens-representatives of other ethnic groups, is ready to do so in accordance with its international obligations with respect to citizens of Armenian origin in Nagorno-Karabakh and to grant them the right of high-level self-government within the internationally recognized borders of the Azerbaijan Republic," said Mammadyarov.

He stressed that the Azerbaijani community of the Nagorno-Karabakh region is ready to return to their homes, and this aspect was again voiced in the recently released statement of the Community.

According to Mammadyarov, direct contacts between the Azerbaijani and Armenian NK communities were interrupted "as a result of the actions of the former leadership of Armenia."

He highlighted the "growing unequivocal support from the international community" on the position of Azerbaijan.

"As a result of our consistent efforts in the diplomatic lexicon, the wording "supporting territorial integrity within internationally recognized borders" has become more widely used, Mammadyarov said.

In support of his words, he referred to the reflection of this wording in a number of documents adopted in 2018 by international organizations, including the final document of the NATO summit, the resolution of the European Parliament, etc. -06D--