Russian FM: Azerbaijan, Armenia stress need to move away from extreme positions on Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

The Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents have today acknowledged the need at the trilateral meeting with Russian President in Sochi to move away from extreme positions and urged to continue making efforts to bring their positions closer, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said. "The parties have fixed a common understanding that it is necessary to move away from maximalist positions to gain further progress which is evident," Lavrov told media as a result of the meeting, RIA Novosti reported. "This was stressed by Armenian and Azerbaijani Presidents with the support of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev." Russian minister said that the whole complex of issues that still remain uncoordinated in the project of basic principles of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement was discussed during a meeting of presidents Aliyev, Medvedev and Sargsyan. The presidents exchanged views on specific complex issues. A conclusion was made that it is necessary to continue working. "The participants of the meeting expressed their willingness to accelerate the work on general principles and then to proceed on this basis to the development of a legally binding peace agreement," Russian Foreign Minister said. He assured that Russia as a mediator and a member of the "troika" of OSCE Minsk Group (Russia, France, US) will continue making its efforts to bring the positions of the parties closer. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 per cent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno- Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - Russia, France, and the U.S. - are currently holding the peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.