Moscow, Nov. 1, (dpa/GNA) - A top-level meeting between Armenia and Azerbaijan in Russia has brought no rapprochement in the decades-old conflict between the two states in the South Caucasus.
Russian President Vladimir Putin received Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani leader Ilham Aliyev in the Russia Black Sea resort of Sochi on Monday.
In a joint declaration, it was agreed to renounce threats and violence in the resolution of conflicts. A peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan is necessary, the three leaders declared. Moscow was ready to support the way there, they said.
In the autumn of 2020, Armenia had lost a war against its neighbour Azerbaijan. As a result, the country had to give up control over most of the Armenian-majority territory of Nagorno-Karabakh that lies within Azerbaijan.
In September, Azerbaijani troops attacked Armenian territory for the first time. The fighting, with dozens of deaths, could only be stopped under great pressure from the United Nations, the EU and other actors.
Russia has traditionally been Armenia’s protecting power in the South Caucasus but also monitored the 2020 ceasefire agreements on behalf of both sides.
GNA