Armenian and Russian Presidents consider possibilities of resolving Karabakh conflict

PanARMENIAN.Net - Russian and Armenian Presidents Dmitry Medvedev and Serzh Sargsyan consider possibilities of developing bilateral ties and settling Nagorno Karabakh conflict.



At the start of the meeting with his Armenian counterpart, Russian leader said, "We will discuss issues included in economic and foreign policy agenda. We'll also dwell on global problems and current serious projects, not leaving aside, of course, the Karabakh settlement process.



Armenian President noted for his part that this is Mr. Medvedev's first visit during the current year. "This is an appropriate time for summing up the results of our joint work and determining plans for 2010."



"I do believe we have grounds for achieving serious progress in 2010. We must do our utmost to have more and more serious achievements by every year," Armenian President said.



Mr. Sargsyan also expressed his gratitude to Russia for its assistance in the strengthening of peace and security in the region. "We are interested in resolving all conflicts through peaceful methods. In this regard, we are not only strategic allies but also co-thinkers," he added.



Agreeing with his Armenian colleague, Russian leader said the two countries are developing ties quite actively.



The Nagorno Karabakh conflict broke out in 1988 as result of the ethnic cleansing launched by Azerbaijan in the final years of the Soviet Union. The Karabakh War was fought from 1991 to 1994. Since the ceasefire in 1994, most of Nagorno Karabakh and several regions of Azerbaijan around it (the security zone) remain under the control of Nagorno Karabakh defense army. Armenia and Azerbaijan have since been holding peace talks mediated by the OSCE Minsk Group.