Pan Armenian News

RUSSIAN MFA: CONFLICT SETTLEMENT SHOULD NOT DEPEND ON ELECTION IN KARABAKH

23.06.2005 04:11

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Yesterday the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA)
issued a statement over the parliamentary election held in Nagorno Karabakh
June 19. The statement specifically remarks, «Due to the «parliamentary
election» held in Nagorno Karabakh lately we would like to indicate the
following. As it is known, Moscow is consistently supporting the principle
of territorial integrity of Azerbaijan equally as other basic norms and
principles of the international law. Russia does not recognize Nagorno
Karabakh as an independent state. Our conviction is that its future status
should be determined without use or threat of force, exclusively via
political talks between all parties to conflict within the Minsk process.
Moscow considers that the course of peaceful settlement of the conflict
should not depend on the holding of any election in Karabakh. We would like
to specially underscore that Russian citizens, who observed the election,
were in Karabakh on their own initiative and exclusively as individuals. In
close interaction with its OSCE Minsk Group partner (US, France) Russia will
further vigorously assist Azeris and Armenians to find a solution to the
conflict as soon as possible.»