Assa-Irada, Azerbaijan
Jan 28 2005

President meets OSCE MG French co-chair

President Ilham Aliyev, in a meeting with the new French co-chair of
the OSCE Minsk Group Bernard Fassier on Thursday, stated that the
OSCE-mediated talks on the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Upper
Garabagh, carried out for the past 10 years, have been fruitless.
Aliyev emphasized that Upper Garabagh and the adjacent seven regions,
historic Azerbaijani territories, are occupied by Armenian armed
forces and that Azerbaijan entered the United Nations with these
areas included. Azerbaijan’s position on the conflict resolution
remains unchanged, the President said.
Fassier said the conflict is greatly impeding the peace and stability
efforts not only in South Caucasus but also the entire Central Asia
region and neighboring territories. He also voiced confidence that
his meeting with President Aliyev would provide him with broader
information on this `sensitive’ conflict.*