Interfax, Russia
April 8 2010

Azerbaijani president wants world to urge Armenia to remove troops

BALINN April 8

European institutions must try and persuade Armenia to withdraw its
troops from occupied Azerbaijani territory, Azerbaijani President
Ilham Aliyev said.

"Occupation of our land for nearly 20 years shows that Armenia’s
unconstructive position and policy of slowing down the peace process
remains a barrier to the settlement of this issue, despite our efforts
to resolve the conflict peacefully, and on the basis of international
law and UN Security Council resolutions," Aliyev told the press in
Tallinn on Wednesday after talks with his Estonian counterpart Toomas
Ilves.

"World organizations and the public are directly involved in settling
this issue, including European institutions, which must try and
influence Armenia, which is currently occupying 20% of a sovereign
territory, in order to remove the aftermath of ethnic purges against
Azerbaijan, to create conditions for the return of one million
Azerbaijani refugees to their homes, and to put an end to the
occupation. After this, peace can be established in the region,"
Aliyev said.