Armenia's approaches fully coincide with the stance of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair-states, Armenian Foreign Minister, Chairman of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe Edward Nalbandian, said answering the questions of the PACE delegates, on June 24, the Armenian Foreign Ministry press-service told ArmInfo.
The source reports Nalbandian as saying that Yerevan fully supported the previous statements by the US, French and Russian presidents unlike Azerbaijan that supports only one principle. Armenia has always supported the principles of non-use of force of threat of force, the people's right to self-determination, and the territorial integrity of states. Despite constant calls to refrain from provocative statements, Baku continues its trigger-happy policy and propagates xenophobia, the minister said. He said that the Council of Europe can greatly contribute to the dialogue and confidence-building between the parties. In addition, Nalbandian said, the Secretary General included the issue of frozen conflicts into the list of the priorities of the Committee of Ministers.
Asked if Armenia will use its chairmanship at the Committee of Ministers as a good opportunity to resolve the conflict, Nalbandian said that Armenia has no problems with establishment of dialogue and conducting negotiations. He recalled that Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers held dozens of meetings along with several meetings of the two presidents. The point is that one of the parties denies all the principles proposed by the co-chairs, even those aimed to boost confidence-building measures. The minister said that he intends to meet with the OSCE MG co-chairs within the coming days.
Barack Obama, President of the United States of America, Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation, and Franбois Hollande, President of the French Republic issued a statement on the Nagorno- Karabakh conflict on the margins of the G8 Summit held in Northern Ireland. "We continue to firmly believe that the elements outlined in the statements of our countries over the last four years must be the foundation of any fair and lasting settlement to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. These elements should be seen as an integrated whole, as any attempt to select some elements over others would make it impossible to achieve a balanced solution...We strongly urge the leaders of all the sides to recommit to the Helsinki principles, particularly those relating to the non-use of force or the threat of force, territorial integrity, and equal rights and self-determination of peoples. We also appeal to them to refrain from any actions or rhetoric that could raise tension in the region and lead to escalation of the conflict. The leaders should prepare their people
for peace, not war," the statement reads.