Finnish foreign minister discusses disputed enclave during visit to Armenia

AP Worldstream
Oct 05, 2004

A disputed enclave whose status has prevented Armenia and neighboring
Azerbaijan from normalizing relations topped discussions between
Finland’s foreign minister and top Armenian officials, Armenia’s
foreign ministry said Tuesday.

In meetings with Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan, Erkki Tuomioja
also discussed Armenia’s efforts to strengthen economic and political
ties with Europe and Armenia’s relations with its giant neighbor and
historic adversary to the south, Turkey, according to the Armenian
ministry.

Armenia and Azerbaijan fought a war in the early 1990s that ended with
a cease-fire in 1994. No final settlement has been reached, however,
as the two countries remain at odds over the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave,
which ethnic Armenians seized after heavy fighting.

Tuomioja and his Armenian counterpart, Vardan Oskanyan, also signed
new agreements on defense and investment, the ministry said.

Before coming to Yerevan, Tuomioja was in Baku, the Azerbaijani
capital, meeting with top officials for discussions on
Nagorno-Karabakh and bilateral trade.