China calls for peaceful resolution of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

/AzerNews/

By Sara Rajabova

Amid international community’s concerns over the outbreak of tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan, China expressed hope for continuation of dialogue between two sides to settle the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict peacefully.

China’s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hong Lei said on November 18 that China hopes that the sides to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict can exercise restraint to avoid escalating of tensions.

He also added that his country is hopeful that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict’s sides can resolve the issue through consultation and dialogue.

He was commenting on the recent incident on the line of contact of Azerbaijani and Armenian troops.

An Armenian MI-24 helicopter flying 1,700 meters northeast of the Kengerli village of Azerbaijan’s Aghdam region attacked the Azerbaijani army positions on November 12. The helicopter was shot down by the Azerbaijani side.

The three crew members on the board of MI-24 helicopter were revealed to be Armenian army's servicemen, who illegally joined the so-called "NKR army." Armenian government made all efforts to deny this fact that the dead crew belonged to its army, but a quick research about the identity of the deceased soldiers revealed that they were Armenian servicemen.

Hong Lei also expressed hope that the OSCE Minsk Group, which has been engaged in peace talks for settlement of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict for over two decades, will play a constructive role in this issue.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict emerged in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since a lengthy war in the early 1990s that displaced over one million Azerbaijanis, Armenian armed forces have occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions.

Long-standing efforts by U.S, Russian and French mediators have been largely fruitless so far. The UN Security Council has passed four resolutions on Armenian withdrawal from the Azerbaijani territory, but they have not been enforced to this day.