OSCE Chairman-in-Office had talks with Foreign Ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia

Baku/11.01.22/Turan: OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Foreign Minister of Northern Macedonia Bujar Osmani held telephone talks with the Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan - Ararat Mirzoyan and Ceyhun Bayramov on January 10.

The sides discussed the situation in the South Caucasus with an emphasis on the Lachin corridor, the OSCE press service reports.

Osmani stressed that he was closely monitoring the situation around the Lachin corridor, and expressed concern about the impact of the situation on the daily lives of the civilian population. Osmani called on all sides to ease tensions and start a constructive and productive dialogue.

He emphasized that confidence-building measures and normalization of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan, as part of the OSCE toolkit, are key elements for overcoming current problems that affect people on the ground.

In this context, OSCE Chairman-in-Office Osmani confirmed his readiness to personally participate in order to help defuse tensions and contribute to sustainable peace. He added that he would pay visits to Armenia and Azerbaijan, the OSCE said in a statement.

In turn, the press service of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry reported that Bayramov informed Osmani about the current situation, the steps taken by Azerbaijan to normalize relations with Armenia, and the obstacles created by Yerevan to negotiations on a peace treaty.

In particular, Armenia illegally exported mineral resources along the Lachin road, supplied mines to the region, and used the Lachin Road for the illegal crossing of third-country citizens.

Bayramov pointed out the groundlessness of the claims about the "blockade" of the Armenian residents of the region, because the unhindered passage along the Lachin road for the civilian population is ongoing. -16B-