U.S., Russian, French presidents make statement on Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

The U.S., Russian and French presidents made a joint statement on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and called on the Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents to prepare the population for peace, not war and to finalize the basic principles of settlement during the upcoming summit in June.

"When the agreement is reached, we are ready to witness the formal adoption of these principles, to assist in the development of the peace agreement and to support its implementation with our international partners," a statement said.

"The further delay will only put the commitment of the parties to reach the agreements under a question," a joint statement of the three presidents of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairing countries said.

"When the agreement is reached, we are ready to witness the formal adoption of these principles, to assist in the development of the peace agreement and to support its implementation with our international partners," a statement said.

"We confirm that only settlement through the negotiations may bring peace, stability and reconciliation, by opening up the opportunities for regional development and cooperation," the statement said. Obama, Sarkozy and Medvedev are convinced that it is time for all the parties of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to take a step towards a peaceful settlement.

They emphasized that the use of force led to the current situation of confrontation and instability. "Its repeated use will bring more suffering and devastation," they said. "It will be condemned by the international community. We urge the leaders of the parties to prepare the population for peace, not war."

They stated that significant progress was made as a result of the efforts made by the parties and co-chairing countries at all levels. The latest version of the fundamental principles, discussed in Sochi on March 5, provides for a fair and balanced basis to prepare the comprehensive peace settlement," a joint statement said. They said that this document allows the parties to overcome the current unacceptable state of affairs.


/Trend/