NATO supports mutually acceptable peaceful solution to Karabakh conflict

NATO supports mutually acceptable peaceful solution to the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the Alliance's special representative for South Caucasus and Central Asia, James Appathurai told reporters in Baku on Thursday.

"There is Minsk process and we don't participate in that, but we support it, it is goal, which is mutually acceptable peaceful solution," he said.

He said there is a concern at the NATO about the unresolved Nagorno-Karabakh situation. "Recently there have been high tension and a number of incidents, which worry us," he added.

According to Appathurai, this region has so much potential - economic and political potential.

"There must be a political solution, and there will be no successful military solution," he underlined.

"NATO as an organization does not comment and cannot comment on the national policy of its members, then is comes to weapons sale," Appathurai made this statement commenting on the U.S. ban on weapons sale to Azerbaijan.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 per cent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - Russia, France and the U.S. - are currently holding peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.


/Trend/