Armenian foreign minister to meet OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs soon
27.04.2015,
15:28
Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandyan, speaking Monday in Yerevan at a joint news conference with his Belgian counterpart Didier Reynders, said he will meet with OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs on April 29.
YEREVAN, April 27. /ARKA/. Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandyan, speaking Monday in Yerevan at a joint news conference with his Belgian counterpart Didier Reynders, said he will meet with OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs on April 29.
According to the Armenian foreign ministry's preliminary information, the meeting will take place in Paris.
Nalbandyan is also quoted by Novosti-Armenia as saying that there is no other option but to settle Karabakh conflict by peaceful means through negotiation.
Karabakh conflict broke out in 1988 when Karabakh, mainly populated by Armenians, declared its independence from Azerbaijan.
On December 10, 1991, a few days after the collapse of the Soviet Union, a referendum took place in Nagorno-Karabakh, and the majority of the population (99.89%) voted for secession from Azerbaijan.
Afterwards, large-scale military operations began. As a result, Azerbaijan lost control over Nagorno-Karabakh and the seven regions adjacent to it.
Some 30,000 people were killed in this war and about one million people fled their homes.
On May 12, 1994, the Bishkek cease-fire agreement put an end to the military operations.
Since 1992, talks brokered by OSCE Minsk Group are being held over peaceful settlement of the conflict. The group is co-chaired by USA, Russia and France. --0---
