New US Co-Chair of OSCE MG appointed

U.S. Secretary of State, John Kerry, announced on Monday the appointment of Ambassador James Warlick as the next U.S. Co-Chair of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group, said in report on official website of the U.S Department of State.

"He is a first-rate diplomat, and I am confident that he will do a tremendous job in this critical post. The United States remains firmly committed to helping the sides reach a lasting and peaceful settlement to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict", Kerry said.

Ambassador Warlick will assume his new position in September.

He most recently served as Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan and lead negotiator for the Bilateral Security Agreement with Afghanistan. He served as Ambassador to Bulgaria from 2009-2012, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of International Organization Affairs from 2006 to 2009, and Director of the Office of European Security and Political Affairs from 2005 to 2006.

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/