Azerbaijan, Armenia: Conflict settlement concept elaborated
Baku Today
June 1 2005
Deputy Foreign Minister and the President’s special envoy on the
Nagorno Karabakh conflict Araz Azimov has elaborated on the Azerbaijani
government’s concept on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement
Azimov told a news conference on Monday that the concept, based
on international legal norms and the recommendations indicated in
the last resolution on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict passed by the
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, envisions liberating
occupied lands, repatriating refugees, establishing relations between
the Azerbaijani and Armenian communities and normalizing ties between
the two countries.
Azerbaijan considers Armenians living in Nagorno Karabakh its citizens
and believes that the conflict cannot be settled only by freeing the
occupied lands, he said.
“We consider the liberation of lands a beginning of this process,”
said Azimov, noting that areas should be cleared from landmines
and communication links restored in the future. He added that these
activities will be impossible without the support of the international
community.