South Caucasus on the table at Macron-Erdogan meetingMarch 25, 2022 - 18:37 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - French and Turkish Presidents Emmanuel Macron and Recep Tayyip Erdogan have met on the sidelines of a NATO summit in Brussels and discussed, among other things, the situation in South Caucasus, the Elysee Palace has said. Macron said France is "determined to finding a permanent political solution to the crisis between Azerbaijan and Armenia" within the Minsk Group co-chairmanship. Macron also expressed satisfaction with the efforts to normalize relations between Turkey and Armenia. The meeting came amid renewed tension in Karabakh (Artsakh). In the past two days, Azerbaijan has been using drones and other munitions to attack Nagorno-Karabakh and has managed to capture a village, kill two soldiers and injure at least five others. It was reported on Friday that lengthy negotiations of the Russian peacekeeping troops have not yielded significant results, and that the Azeris have not returned to the starting positions. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Biden honors resilience of Armenian people on April 24 U.S. President Joe Biden has issued a statement on the 109th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Ex-Karabakh leader moved to solitary confinement cell in Baku, his son says David Vardanyan is the son of former Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan who who is currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan. Macron says France commemorates 109th anniv. of Armenian genocide Today France commemorates the 109th anniversary of the Armenian genocide of 1915, Macron says. Freedom House concerned by mounting reports of police violence in Armenia Freedom House urged Armenian authorities to investigate this pattern of excessive force and inhumane treatment. |