BAKU (Trend)–An Azeri presidential advisor Monday said there were unresolved issues within the Karabakh peace negotiations, specifically the fate of Lachin and the status of Karabakh, in a direct response to commen’s made by the Russian Foreign Minister who during a trip to Armenia last week said that Baku and Yerevan had agreed to a wide range of principles.
"The sides have not reached an agreement on the status of Nagorno-Karabakh and the Lachin (Kashatagh) corridor, as well as where to place peacemaking forces," Novruz Mammadov, Head of the International Relations Department of the Azeri Presidential office, told Trend News.
The presidential advisor said the sides could not focus on the principles already agreed upon, since several of the issues remain uncoordinated.
“The statement made by Sergey Lavrov caused serious concern. The two sides [Russian, Armenian] have made similar statemen’s before, which have also caused grave concerns,” said Mammadov, reiterating Azerbaijan’s continued assertions that the conflict must be resolved in phases.
“It is not necessary to discuss or publicize the points that have been agreed upon, since they might damage the negotiation process. The issues on the table now are the more important issues and they will impact all other points discussed during the negotiations, added Mammadov.
“If Armenia fulfills all the responsibilities that it has been given then Armenia’s can live a better life,” said the advisor, who urged the Minsk Group and other international organizations to be fair in their approach to the Karabakh conflict since “Armenia has occupied 20 percent of its neighbor’s territory,” claimed Mammadov.
“The international community and [Minsk Group] co-chairs continue to take the proper position on this matter and that is wrong,” said Mammadov, adding that Azerbaijan has always advocated the right approach for the conflict resolution process.