MOSCOW, November 12. /TASS/. US and French representatives will come to Moscow soon to discuss the implementation of agreements on Nagorno-Karabakh dated November 9, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated on Thursday.
According to him, Russia does not want to distance itself from its OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs on this issue.
"What is more, we invited them to Moscow, they will come in the next few days to have a detailed discussion of how they can facilitate the implementation of the agreements reached," Lavrov said, stressing that this concerns the establishment of peaceful life in Karabakh, the co-existence of different ethnic and religious groups there, and the recovery of cultural objects in the region. "The co-chairs [of the OSCE Minsk Group] can play a huge role in this, along with UN organizations, such as UNESCO first and foremost," the minister said.
Lavrov did not agree with the opinion that the previous efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs aimed to reach a ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh had no effect. He noted that while the previous attempts to establish a ceasefire did not work by themselves, they "created a critical mass" that helped reach practical results.
Lavrov pointed out that during the recent contacts with France and the US, Russia felt "some sort of resentment" from their side over the fact that Moscow had not disclosed the details of the Karabakh talks. The Russian foreign minister explained that Russia was working on the ceasefire within the provisions stipulated by the OSCE Minsk Group. The talks leading up to the November 9 deal "lasted several days literally 24/7, there were several phone calls a day," so it was physically impossible "to brief American and French partners" after every conversation. "I am confident that the explanations that we gave were taken the right way," Lavrov noted.
"We offered the UN Security Council to welcome the ceasefire agreements, stressing that they form part of the initiatives put forward by the [OSCE Minsk Group] co-chairs," the top diplomat stated.
On November 9, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan signed a joint statement on a complete ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh starting from November 10. The Russian leader said the Azerbaijani and Armenian sides would maintain the positions that they had held and Russian peacekeepers would be deployed to the region. Besides, Baku and Yerevan must exchange prisoners and the bodies of those killed.