Russia is in favor of arranging a UNESCO mission to Nagorno-Karabakh as soon as possible and is working with the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group on the matter, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told a briefing on Wednesday, February 9.

"The subject of the preservation of cultural and historical heritage is discussed in regular contacts with Baku and Yerevan," she said.

She recalled that the joint statement dated December 7, 2021 of the Foreign Ministers of Russia, the United States and France calls on Armenia and Azerbaijan to continue cooperation under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs to achieve real progress on humanitarian issues, including, among other things, the protection of historical and cultural objects.

Zakharova's comments came a week after Azerbaijan announced it was planning to erase Armenian traces from medieval churches and monasteries that have come under Baku's control following the war in Nagorno-Karabakh in fall 2020.