ArmInfo. Official Baku made a statement in connection with the invitation of representatives of Artsakh to take part in the meeting of the Lazarev Club in Moscow.
Thus, head of the press service of the Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan, Leyla Abdullayeva, assured that such steps contradict the goals of a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. "As you know, the site of the Russian-Armenian Lazarev Club, which began operating last year, is used for provocative purposes. This is quite obvious when considering the opinions voiced at the first meeting of this club in Yerevan from November 30 to December 1, 2018" said Abdullayeva, adding that Azerbaijan, through the embassy in Russia, expressed its displeasure to the Russian Foreign Ministry in connection with this issue.
Abdullayeva also believes that inviting representatives of Artsakh to the event, as well as the views of the club's founder, Konstantin Zatulin, who holds the position of First Deputy Chairman of the Russian State Duma Committee on CIS Affairs, Eurasian Integration and Relations with Compatriots, aim to damage the high-level relations between Azerbaijan and Russia. "Such activity of the Lazarev Club, which clearly contradicts the goals of a peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict through substantive negotiations, does not coincide with the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs, including Russia, to advance the conflict resolution process. In the event that sufficient efforts are not made to prevent invitations of representatives of the illegal regime to the event against the background of the organization of such a meeting by an official who occupies a leading position in the Russian parliament, which I wish to set up one of the co-chairs, it will give rise to certain questions, "-Abdullayeva concluded.