July 9, 2009 - 14:39 AMT
Russian, French U.S. leaders may adopt statement on Karabakh
Russia can adopt a joint statement with two other Group of Eight members at the ongoing summit in Italy on a long-running territorial dispute between Azerbaijan and Armenia, a Kremlin aide said.

Arkady Dvorkovich told reporters after the first day of the summit in the Italian mountain town of L'Aquila: "Consultations are being held on Nagorno Karabakh on the form of a declaration, and essentially, we agree on the issue."

"We expect that such a declaration could be produced. But it is more likely to be a statement from three countries - Russia, France, and the United States - than from the G8," he said.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan met in Prague last month to discuss the conflict, on the sidelines of the EU's Eastern Partnership summit, and said some progress had been reached, RIA Novosti reported.