Baku criticizes Armenia premier's statement calling for involvement of Stepanakert in talks on Karabakh settlement
BAKU. June 7 (Interfax) - The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry believes statements made by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on the participation by the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic in the negotiations on the conflict settlement are not constructive.
"We see such statements by the administration of Armenia as a non-constructive step aimed at disrupting the negotiation process and maintaining the status quo based on occupation," Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry press secretary Khikmet Gadzhiyev said, commenting on the Armenian prime minister's statement.
"If the administration of Armenia is concerned about the fact that the agreements reached only remain on paper, it has to fulfil the relevant decisions made by the UN Security Council. These decisions require immediate and unconditional vacation of the occupied territories of Azerbaijan," he said.
Azerbaijan has repeatedly stated its position on the conflict and supports its prompt settlement, he said.
"Armenia has to understand that Azerbaijan made a big concession by having conducted negotiations with a country that has occupied our territories for 25 years," Gadzhiyev said.
Nikol Pashinyan said on Thursday the negotiations on Karabakh settlement cannot be effective if the administration of the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic does not participate in them.