Azerbaijan FM: Recent discussions in U.S. Congress cannot lead to stability and peace in region

"From this viewpoint , I do not think that the recent discussions in the Congress can lead to stability and peace in the region," the Minister said at a meeting on harmonization of the draft agreement on cooperation through the customs border services and departments of the interior agencies in the field of security in the Caspian Sea held in Baku.

Mammadyarov said if the Congress discusses peace in the Caucasus, then real circumstances and the fact that twenty percent of Azerbaijani territories is under Armenian occupation must also be taken into account.

U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs adopted 23 votes to 22 the resolution recognizing the so-called "Armenian genocide" on March 4.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 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 the peace negotiations.

Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh region and the occupied territories.


/Trend News/