Lavrov: It's not Russia's fault that Karabakh war "lasted longer "

PanARMENIAN.Net - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said it's not Russia's fault that the war in Nagorno-Karabakh lasted longer than it should have.

Lavrov's comments came in response to a question from Russian-Armenian University Rector Armen Darbinyan at the Primakov Readings forum on Wednesday, June 9.

"If we speak about who was fighting a war, this question is closed for all sensible people. The bloodshed is over. It ended a little later than we suggested to the parties. And it is not our fault that the war lasted longer, the truce was achieved later. We were only mediators. We couldn't force the parties to do things. We only tried to convince them that further bloodshed doesn't make sense and is extremely dangerous, first of all, for how people will live on those lands in the future," Lavrov said.

Lavrov also maintained that no "major incidents" have taken place in Karabakh where Russian peacekeepers are stationed, while minor hiccups are settled with their help. He added that the status of Nagorno-Karabakh must be coordinated with the involvement of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs (Russia, U.S., France).

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Russian and Azerbaijani Presidents Vladimir Putin and Ilham Aliyev on November 9 signed a statement to end the war in Karabakh after almost 45 days. Under the deal, the Armenian side has returned all the seven regions surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh, having lost a part of Karabakh itself in hostilities.