The United States is calling on Armenia and Azerbaijan to continue their work with the Minsk Group in order to reach a lasting, peaceful end to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun said at the OSCE Ministerial Council Plenary Session on Thursday, December 3.

"We urge the governments of Armenia and Azerbaijan to resume work with the Minsk Group co-chairs to reach a lasting, peaceful end to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. This dispute will not be resolved on the battlefield," Biegun said.

"We welcome the cessation of hostilities, but this is only the first step. Any enduring solution must be based on the principles in the Helsinki Final Act."

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Russian and Azerbaijani Presidents Vladimir Putin and Ilham Aliyev on November 9 signed a statement to end the war in Karabakh after almost 45 days. Under the deal, the Armenian side is returning all the seven regions surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh, having lost a part of Karabakh itself in hostilities.