The deputy foreign ministers of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia, Turkey and Iran met in Moscow on Friday for the first round of talks around the dangerous Ankara-proposed “3+3” scheme, which is backed by Baku and envisions the creation of regional bloc. Georgia, whose participation was anticipated for the success of the scheme, has rejected the plan.
“Prospects for the development of multilateral regional cooperation were discussed during the meeting. An agreement was reached to focus the work of the platform on the practical issues that are of interest to all its participants,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“These include confidence-building measures, cooperation in the trade, economic, transport, cultural and humanitarian spheres, and response to common challenges and threats,” added the statement, which emphasized that the “representatives of the five countries expressed interest for Georgia to join the platform, for which the door remain open.”
Armenia was represented at the talks by Deputy Foreign Minister Vahe Gevorgyan, who, according to a press statement, reaffirmed Armenia’s position that the agenda of regional consultations should aim to form a mutually beneficial agenda for regional cooperation, and not replicate the activities of other international platforms, including those with conflict resolution mandates, such as the OSCE Minsk Group.
“An agreement was reached to continue the consultations based on the respect of the rights of all countries in the region,” Gevorgyan said.
