Hikmet Çetin: Nagorno-Karabakh conflict should have been solved

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict should have been solved, Turkey’s former foreign minister Hikmet Çetin said, speaking with the corespondent of Vestnik Kavkaza on the sidelines of the Global Young Leaders Forum in Baku.

"Today we have reached the status of the so-called frozen conflict. Of course, it's good that no blood of the military and civilians is being shed now, but the problem does not resolve this status quo, so we need to find the final solution to the conflict. There are all conditions, since we have the UN resolutions confirming the occupation of Azerbaijan's territories by the Armenian Armed Forces and more than a million refugees, demanding the return to their homes," Hikmet Çetin drew attention.

The former Foreign Minister of Turkey indicated that Armenia, occupying the territories of Azerbaijan, caused the greatest damage to itself, its own economy and population. "Armenia has lost, because it continues to occupy the Azerbaijani territories, while Azerbaijan skillfully controls the situation and resolves existing problems," he stressed.

Hikmet Çetin called for the establishment of a full-fledged peace in the region. "The South Caucasus needs peace today. The United States and Turkey should do their utmost to resolve the Karabakh problem. Strong Turkey is one of the guarantors of the settlement of the conflict in the future, because it is Azerbaijan's ally. Turkey should also make efforts to explain the international community the need for a soonest settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict," the former Turkish Foreign Minister concluded.