Parties willing to resolve Karabakh conflict through negotiations: Warlick

PanARMENIAN.Net - OSCE Minsk Group U.S. Co-chair James Warlick gave an interview to BBC Azeri, noting that the Nagorno Karabakh conflict is not frozen, RFE/RL Armenian Service reports.

Speaking about the tension at the contact line and along the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, Warlick said: “We are concerned about the ceasefire violations by the parties and the use of heavy weapons, including artillery. Using shells and heavy weapons is unacceptable. We are particularly concerned about the civilian losses and call on the parties to take all possible steps to avoid violence. I believe the parties do support the Co-chairs’ wish to resolve the conflict through negotiations. We will first address the issues of tension reduction and ceasefire maintenance during a meeting with the Foreign Ministers at the UN General Assembly.”

According to Warlick, public diplomacy is very important in terms of building confidence between the Azerbaijani and Armenian peoples.

“Despite the very high tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the Co-chairs are trying to contribute to communication between the residents of the two countries. In this sense, both the Armenian and Azerbaijani communities of Nagorno-Karabakh are no exception. I have repeatedly stated that the parties, together with the Co-chairs should address the interests of war-affected people, the most striking example being the problem of water. I hope the parties will be able to discuss the distribution of water resources,” the Co-chair said.

Earlier, Ambassador Warlick posted a photo of Sarsagn reservoir on his Instagram page, suggesting that the joint use of water from the reservoir could serve as the basis for cooperation between the Nagorno Karabakh Republic and Azerbaijan.