Azerbaijani,French foreign office chiefs to mull Karabakh conflict resolution

Azerbaijani and French Foreign Ministers Elmar Mammadyarov and Laurent Fabius will meet in Paris on July 23, spokesman for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Elman Abdullayev told journalists today.

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister's visit to France is of working nature.

The foreign ministers of the two countries will first discuss the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement and the prospects of bilateral cooperation between Azerbaijan and France.

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/