YEREVAN, December 2. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin played ‘an exceptional role’ in stopping the bloodshed in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict area, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at a summit of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) being held via a video conference on Wednesday.

"I want to emphasize the exceptional role of Russian President Vladimir Putin. In the course of all the 44 days of military confrontation, we were in constant contact and discussed necessary measures to stop the bloodshed and protect people’s lives. I continue closely working with Vladimir Vladimirovich [Putin] today to solve such tasks as the search for those missing, the exchange of prisoners of war and persons being held in custody and the bodies of those killed," Pashinyan said.

Renewed clashes between Azerbaijan and Armenia erupted on September 27 with intense battles in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

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 forces would maintain the positions that they had held and Russian peacekeepers would be deployed to the region.