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Effective mechanisms needed for prevention of ceasefire violations in Nagorno-Karabakh â€“ Russian FM

04 May 2016 17:25 (UTC +04:00)

“At present, the main issue is to avoid further losses and create effective mechanisms to prevent any ceasefire violations,” Lavrov said.

The minister mentioned that Armenia and Azerbaijan agreed on creating a mechanism for investigating incidents and building confidence five years ago through the mediation of former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.

“The OSCE was entrusted with dealing this issue, and OSCE representatives put forward different proposals. However, unfortunately, the issue did not go further in 2012. Now we want the parties to return to this issue. German’s OSCE Chairmanship wants to be active and we encourage that desire,” Lavrov added.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict entered its modern phase when the Armenian SRR made territorial claims against the Azerbaijani SSR in 1988.

A fierce war broke out between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. As a result of the war, Armenian armed forces occupied some 20 percent of Azerbaijani territory which includes Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent districts (Lachin, Kalbajar, Aghdam, Fuzuli, Jabrayil, Gubadli and Zangilan), and over a million Azerbaijanis became refugees and internally displaced people.

The military operations finally came to an end when Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in Bishkek in 1994.

Dealing with the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is the OSCE Minsk Group, which was created after the meeting of the OSCE Ministerial Council in Helsinki on 24 March 1992. The Group’s members include Azerbaijan, Armenia, Russia, the United States, France, Italy, Germany, Turkey, Belarus, Finland and Sweden.

Besides, the OSCE Minsk Group has a co-chairmanship institution, comprised of Russian, US and French co-chairs, which began operating in 1996.

Resolutions 822, 853, 874 and 884 of the UN Security Council, which were passed in short intervals in 1993, and other resolutions adopted by the UN General Assembly, PACE, OSCE, OIC, and other organizations require Armenia to unconditionally withdraw its troops from Nagorno-Karabakh.