Patel Comments on Zakharova's Statement Regarding Armenian-Azerbaijani Negotiations

US State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel addressed the comments made by Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova during a press briefing, where she stated that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's remarks about "significant progress" contradict the comments from both the Azerbaijani and Armenian sides.

“I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about what my Russian counterpart says from her podium. I can say that the very important issue of peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan is something this department will continue to be deeply engaged in. We believe there is a clear path forward. We were clearly pleased to host these two countries in early May. We think those discussions were productive and laid the groundwork for the continuation of these negotiations starting in Brussels, and we will allow that process to unfold,” Patel stated.

It is worth noting that Zakharova, while commenting on the assessments of the Washington talks by the American side, stated that Secretary Blinken's comments about "significant progress" contradict the statements made by the Azerbaijani and Armenian sides. Zakharova highlighted the existing disagreements regarding the substantive points of the “peace treaty” mentioned by both parties.

“We proceed from the fact that the work on the peace project will continue on a bilateral basis between Baku and Yerevan. We see our role in supporting that process. That is why we have proposed the Moscow platform for the next round of negotiations,” the Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson noted.