France calls on Karabakh conflict parties to greatest restraint

PanARMENIAN.Net - On March 10, 2011, Foreign Ministry of France issued a statement on situation in Nagorno-Karabakh.

“We have noted with concern the recent incidents occurred on the contact line in Nagorno-Karabakh, which resulted loss of human lives. As co-chairs of the Minsk Group in their press release dated March 9, we condemn the use of force in Nagorno-Karabakh and call on all parties to the greatest restraint.

Only the negotiations will lead to a political solution, balanced and negotiated settlement to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. There can be no military solution to this conflict. France, with its partners the U.S. and Russia also co-chairs of the Minsk Group reaffirms its strongest determination to support the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan, according to the principles outlined by the presidents Sarkozy, Obama and Medvedev in Muskoka in 2010 and L'Aquila in 2009, to help achieve a balanced political solution and negotiated to the Nagorno-Karabakh on the basis of the principles and norms of international law, the UN Charter, and an appropriate combination of the principles of the Helsinki Final Act non-use of force or its threat, territorial integrity and equal rights of peoples and self-determination,” the statement says.

Baku stays true to the traditions it established, staging provocations on the line of contact before or after every presidential meeting.

On March 5, Azerbaijan violated the ceasefire several hours before the Armenia-Azerbaijan- Russia presidential meeting in Sochi. The provocation resulted in a death of a serviceman Grigor Shakhkyan (born in 1991).

This has been the second frontier incident in 2 days, provoked by the Azerbaijani side. On March 3, serviceman Hovhannes Avdalyan was wounded in Azeri firing of Karabakh’s positions.

A major incident at the conflicting parties' contact line was recorded immediately after a trilateral meeting of the Armenian, Azerbaijani and Russian Presidents. On June 18, an Azerbaijani armed reconnaissance team penetrated into Artsakh territory. To disarm the group consisting of twenty soldiers, a unit of the NKR army undertook measures, as a result of which the Azerbaijani group suffered losses and retreated. 5 Armenian servicemen died as a result.