OSCE Secretary General Lamberto Zannier has urged Armenia and Azerbaijan to withdraw snipers from the contact line at Nagorno-Karabakh today. At a press conference with Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian, he noted that this idea is the main message to Yerevan and Baku, RIA Novosti reports.
Nalbandian emphasized that there is no alternative to peaceful negotiations to settle the situation. He reminded that the joint statement of president of OSCE MG at Los Cabos rules use out the of force, while Azerbaijan continues purchasing weapons.
Zannier arrived in Armenia on Wednesday. He will meet Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, Speaker of Parliament Ovik Abramyan, political parties and the public. He has already visited Georgia and Azerbaijan.
Zannier said at a meeting with Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov in Baku on May 9 that the status quo of the conflict is unacceptable. The OSCE recommends a more active monitoring mission in Nagorno-Karabakh instead.
Mammadyarov insists that ending Armenian occupation of Azerbaijani lands should be the key solution, instead of improving monitoring mechanisms. No progress in settling the conflict has been made in the last 20 years, the foreign minister notes.
