Earthtimes (press release), UK
Nov 2 2008

Presidents agree peaceful solution to Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

Posted : Sun, 02 Nov 2008 15:18:07 GMT
Author : DPA

Moscow – The presidents of Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan have agreed
to a peaceful solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in light of
the recent war in Georgia. A declaration on calming the situation in
the south Caucasus was signed by the presidents of the three countries
Sunday in Moscow, the Interfax news agency cited the Kremlin as
saying.

Russian President Dmitri Medvedev had invited Armenian President Serge
Sarkisian and Azerbaijani colleague Ilkham Aliyev to Moscow for
negotiations over the issue.

According to the declaration, it was incumbent upon the parties to
follow international law in finding a solution to the conflict between
Armenia, Azerbaijan, and the breakaway region of Nagorno- Karabakh
following the August war in Georgia over its regions of South Ossetia
and Abkhazia.

Nagorno-Karabakh, which like South Ossetia and Abkhazia is seeking
independence, has throughout the 20th century been claimed by both
Armenia and Azerbaijan.

The conflict broke out in 1988 when the Nagorno-Karabakh, inhabited
mainly by ethnic Armenians, pulled out of the Soviet Republic of
Azerbaijan. The region saw bloody conflicts between ethnic Armenians
and Azerbaijanis when the entity declared itself a republic and
Azerbaijan lost control over the region.

A fragile ceasefire has been in place since 1994. The so-called Minsk
Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
(OSCE) has been acting as a moderator in the conflict, and the three
presidents on Sunday agreed a close cooperation with the Minsk Group.