Response to Lavrov�s Statement in Baku and Yerevan

Baku / 16.01.18 / Turan: Azerbaijan welcomes the statement of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the need for a gradual settlement of the Karabakh conflict, said the head of the press service of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, Hikmet Hajiyev, commenting on Lavrov's speech on Monday, dedicated to the results of 2017.

"This step-by-step approach will show what can be done now, determine the ways in which further discussions are needed in connection with the final settlement of the conflict and the status of Nagorno-Karabakh." That is, the matter for the parties to the conflict, "Lavrov said.

Note that the Armenian side also reacted to the words of Lavrov, interpreting them in its own way. Thus, the Spokesman for the Armenian Foreign Ministry Tigran Balayan decided that the step-by-step approach indicated by the Russian Foreign Minister envisages a package settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

"We are talking about a package settlement with a phased implementation, as the co-chairs repeatedly stated, as well as about the situation on the contact line.

We welcome this statement. This is the essence of the proposals to create a mechanism to investigate incidents and increase the capacity of the office of the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office," Balayan said, commenting on Lavrov's statement. -02D-