Armenia hails OSCE's approaches to conflict resolution

PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenia welcomes the approaches of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmanship calling for the resumption of negotiations between Yerevan and Baku, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Friday, July 30.

The co-chairs issued a message on Thursday, reiterating their proposal to organize direct bilateral consultations between Armenia and Azerbaijan under their auspices, in order for the sides to review and agree jointly upon a structured agenda, reflecting their priorities, without preconditions.

"The statement of the co-chairs once again proves that the key to regional peace and security is a comprehensive settlement of the Karabakh conflict," the Armenian Foreign Ministry said.

"Azerbaijan's incursion into the sovereign territory of Armenia and the attacks on Armenian positions of recent days have led to the escalation of the situation. Armenia has always been in favor of de-escalation and has made concrete proposals, such as pull back forces to positions occupied as of May 11."

The Armenian side also expressed conviction that a targeted assessment of Azerbaijan's actions will help overcome the "explosive situation".

In the wee hours of July 28, the Azerbaijani armed forces attacked the Armenian positions in Gegharkunik province, triggering local battles. Three Armenian troops were killed, five others were wounded in the process, the Defense Ministry said, adding that the Azerbaijani forces have been thwarted back to their positions. The Azerbaijanis fired on Armenian positions on July 29 too, injuring one more soldier.