Russia plays a leading role in the settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, Russia’s Plenipotentiary Representative to the OSCE Alexander Lukashevich told Russia-24 in an interview.

“The attempt to reach an agreement with the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan in Vienna through the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs (Russia, France, USA) certainly gave some impulse, but the Russian side has the largest potential,” the Russian diplomat said, TASS reports.

He noted that he expects no breakthrough connected with the visit of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier to Yerevan and Baku.

“Although the acting chairmanship leads the process, it’s states that make decisions. The Chairman-in-Office, undoubtedly, plays an important role, but it’s not the driving force. The driving force is the Minsk Group with its three co-chairs,” he noted.