Russia as a mediator could resolve the territorial conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno Karabakh, Moskovskiye Novosti daily reported on Thursday, quoting the first president of Armenia, Levon Ter-Petrosyan.
The presidents of Russia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan will hold a trilateral meeting in Kazan on June 24. Settling the Nagorno Karabakh conflict will be the main issue on the agenda at the meeting.
“Russia has a chance and I am convinced that the West would not be very much against the fact that this issue is resolved this way, if the conflicting parties take the same track,” Ter-Petrosyan said.
Ter-Petrosyan hopes that the meeting will make progress in resolving the problem and there is a probability of success thanks to the fact that Russia is acting as an intermediary.
“If both parties are on friendly terms with you, you are the best mediator – this is the law,” Ter-Petrosyan added.
Nagorny Karabakh, a breakaway region on Azerbaijani territory with a predominantly ethnic Armenian population, has been at the center of a bitter conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia for decades.
It has remained under Armenian control since the late 1980s, when the region claimed independence from Azerbaijan to join Armenia. The conflict is estimated to have left more than 30,000 people dead on both sides between 1988 and 1994.
The OSCE Minsk Group, comprising Russia, France and the United States, mediates the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over Nagorny Karabakh.