US Department of State urges parties to Karabakh conflict to find peaceful means for settlement

YEREVAN, January 24. /ARKA/. US Department of State deputy spokesperson Marie Harf said at a briefing Wednesday she is not aware of the recent Azerbaijani subversive act in Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR), but promised to check up on the facts.

Azerbaijani armed force subversive groups made attempts to penetrate into Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) overnight into Monday morning, but were thrown back and suffered losses. Lance sergeant of Karabakh Army of Defense Armen Hovhannisyan was killed in the skirmish.

In responding a reporter’s question about US Department of State’s very general statements after each attack or an attempt to attack by Azerbaijan, Harf said the Department of State is commenting on each of the incidents.

The US calls on the parties to the conflict to refrain from violence and seek peaceful means for settlement, Harf said.

The Karabakh conflict started in 1988 when prevailingly Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh declared withdrawal from Azerbaijan. On December 10, 1991, a referendum was held in Nagorno-Karabakh where 99.89% voted for independence from Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan responded by large-scale military operations that led to loss of control not only over Nagorno-Karabakh itself, but also over seven adjoining areas. About 25-30 thousands people were killed and about a million had to leave their homes during the military operations.

A trilateral cease-fire agreement was signed on May 12, 2004, and has been followed since then.

The ongoing Karabakh peace process started in 1992 under auspices of OSCE Minsk Group co-chaired by the USA, Russia and France. -0-