The tripartite meeting between the Armenian, Azerbaijani and Russian Presidents on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict was at least a step forward toward peace, Armenia’s deputy parliament speaker Eduard Sharmazanov said Tuesday, June 21.

Serzh Sargsyan, Ilham Aliyev and Vladimir Putin met on Monday in Saint Petersburg to address the peaceful settlement of the conflict.

“Nobody expected a breakthrough from the Saint Petersburg-hosted meeting without the full participation of Nagorno Karabakh,” Sharmazanov said.

“Nonetheless, the summit was useful for ensuring relative calm along the Karabakh contact line.”

“If the parties want to register progress, Azerbaijan must stick to the 1994-1995 ceasefire agreement,” Sharmazanov added.

“The implementation of Karabakh’s right to self-determination has no alternative, Karabakh will never be part of Azerbaijan.”