Azeri leader says UN debates on Karabakh won’t replace OSCE mediation

Turan news agency
3 Nov 04

BAKU

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has confirmed that Baku adheres to
the settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict within the
framework of the OSCE Minsk Group.

Discussions of the situation on the occupied territories at the UN
General Assembly will not inflict “damage” on the Minsk process, he
said, commenting on Azerbaijan’s initiative to include the issue on
the agenda of the 59th session of the UN General Assembly.

Ilham Aliyev is confident that this would have a positive impact on
the negotiations. “Everyone should realize that Armenia has occupied
Azerbaijani territories and this injustice and violation of
international legal norms should be eliminated,” Aliyev stressed.

Discussions on the Karabakh settlement should be as extensive as
possible and should be held at different international organizations –
in the UN, the European Union, the Council of Europe etc., he
said. Aliyev noted that the UN is “the most influential” and the
largest international organization which had already adopted four
resolutions on the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict.

“Although Armenia ignores the UN resolutions, the discussions of the
problem in the UN is a positive fact. I do not think that this
initiative is aimed at replacing the OSCE Minsk Group with another
body,” Aliyev said.