Lavrov: Russia ready to help settle Karabakh conflict

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had a telephone conversation with his Armenian counterpart Zograd Mnatsakanyan to discuss possible ways of settling the situation in the zone of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the Russian foreign ministry said.

"The focus was made on issues linked with the search for ways out of the current situation in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone," the ministry said.

The Russian top diplomat expressed concern over the growing number of casualties among civilians in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. "The Russian side expressed concern over the growing number of casualties among civilians and stressed the necessity of an immediate ceasefire," TASS cited the ministry as saying.

Apart from that, Lavrov reiterated Russia’s readiness to help settle the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. "The Russian side reiterated its readiness to help the parties to the conflict get back to the political and diplomatic settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs in line with the joint statement of the Russian, US and French presidents," the ministry said.