ArmInfo. Armenia continues to work on developing international mechanisms for organizing direct meetings between representatives of Artsakh and Azerbaijan. Secretary of the RA Security Council Armen Grigoryan stated this on October 9 from the rostrum of the RA National Assembly.
He noted that within the framework of these mechanisms, it is planned to create conditions for holding negotiations between Artsakh and Azerbaijan on such an issue as ensuring the rights and security of the residents of Karabakh. "In the course of meetings with international partners, we observe an increased interest in this problem. There is hope for achieving the set goal>, Grigoryan said.
He noted that the Armenian side is in favor of separating the issue of the rights of the inhabitants of Artsakh from the process of negotiations on a peace agreement with Azerbaijan, since there are no clarity on the international mechanisms for direct negotiations between Stepanakert and Baku. That is why the issue of the peace treaty is a priority for Yerevan. The Secretary of the Security Council added that Baku's position that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has been resolved does not contribute to solving the problem.
It should be noted that discussions on the issue of direct negotiations and the above-mentioned international mechanism started on September 27 during a meeting in Washington between the Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia Armen Grigoryan, Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan for Foreign Policy Hikmet Hajiyev and National Security Adviser to the US President Jake Sullivan. After this meeting, the media leaked a document in which some agreements were recorded. After the leak of the document, there was no official refutation by either the authorities of Armenia or Azerbaijan. In particular, it was mentioned in the section about direct negotiations of the Washington document: "The government of Azerbaijan will appoint a representative to work with a similar representative of the Armenian ethnic community of Nagorno- Karabakh and will discuss the rights and security of the inhabitants of Nagorno-Karabakh. The representatives will ensure that the deliberations are transparent to the international community. The parties will jointly discuss the role of international observers without prejudice to the sovereignty of Azerbaijan, as well as to ensure the protection of the minority groups in Nagorno-Karabakh>.