MOSCOW, August 4. /TASS/. Azerbaijan and Armenia are not ready to conclude a peace treaty on just any terms as certain difficult issues are yet to be resolved, Denis Gonchar, director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Fourth CIS Department, said in an interview with TASS.
"The signals that Baku and Yerevan are sending about their commitment to achieving peace as soon as possible don't mean that the parties are ready to accept just any terms. Solutions to a number of difficult issues are yet to be found," he pointed out.
According to the diplomat, ensuring security and respect for the universally recognized rights of the Armenian population of the Nagorno-Karabakh region within Azerbaijan’s legal framework is one of the most important issues. "The parties determined the corresponding logic after mutually confirming the effectiveness of the 1991 Alma-Ata Protocols. A mechanism of international support for the implementation of a treaty that would not question the sovereignty and political independence of Armenia and Azerbaijan is also required," Gonchar added.
"Work on an Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty is one of the elements of trilateral agreements made by the president of Russia, the president of Azerbaijan and the prime minister of Armenia. Russia is actively assisting Baku and Yerevan in efforts to develop this document, using political and diplomatic channels at all levels, with trilateral summits held every year and foreign ministers’ meetings held on a regular basis," the diplomat noted.
In addition, Igor Khovayev, special envoy of the Russian Foreign Minister, was appointed in April 2022 to promote the normalization of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia, and he has been working actively ever since, Gonchar added.