Mnatsakanyan, Mamedyarov, and the Minsk Group Held a Video Conference

The Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan, along with the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, have agreed to maintain close ties and resume negotiations as soon as possible. This was stated in a joint announcement by the foreign ministers of the two countries and the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, following a video conference held on April 21.

The statement reads as follows: “The Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan, Zohrab Mnatsakanyan and Elmar Mamedyarov, as well as the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group (Igor Popov from Russia, Stephanie Visconti from France, and Andrew Schofer from the USA), have been conducting remote consultations frequently since mid-March, including the joint video conference held on April 21. The Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Andrzej Kasprzyk, also participated in these consultations.

During the consultations, the participants discussed the impact of the health crisis on the region and the latest developments on the ground. They also considered further steps in the resolution process of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, in accordance with their joint statement published on January 30, 2020, in Geneva.

It was acknowledged that the implementation of previously agreed humanitarian measures has been postponed due to the emergency situation arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. Personal meetings at the ministerial level and visits by the co-chairs to the region, which were agreed upon in Geneva, have also been delayed. Nevertheless, the necessary preparatory work for these measures continues.

The co-chairs emphasized the importance of strictly maintaining the ceasefire and urged both sides to refrain from provocative actions in the current circumstances, calling on them to take measures toward further reducing tension.

They also expressed gratitude to the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for ongoing efforts in the current situation and highlighted the need to resume monitoring promptly.

Considering the enormous challenges currently faced by the entire population, irrespective of political borders, and which serve as a serious reminder of the value of each human life, the foreign ministers and co-chairs expressed hope that the resolve to respond to the global pandemic would provide a creative and constructive impetus to the peace process.

The co-chairs mentioned the call made by the United Nations Secretary-General on March 23 for global ceasefire measures during the current health crisis and the statement made by the co-chairs on March 19.

The foreign ministers and co-chairs agreed to maintain close ties and resume negotiations in person as soon as possible.