EU Special Representative to discuss Karabakh issue in Baku

EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus, Herbert Salber, will arrive in Baku today to discuss the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

He also plans to hold a number of meetings with Baku officials. The main topic of the talks will be the latest developments on the contact line between Armenian and Azerbaijani troops, Trend reports.

On the night of April 2 all Azerbaijan’s border line positions were subject to heavy fire from large-caliber artillery, mortars, grenade launchers and guns. In addition, densely populated Azerbaijani settlements near the front line, were also shelled.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20% of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US, are currently holding peace negotiations.

Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.