The visit of U.S. Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg to Armenia and Azerbaijan is aimed to relieve tensions in the region and discuss the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement process, a spokesman for the Department of State said.

The Obama administration wishes the South Caucasus countries resolved their disagreements regarding opening of borders and building normal relations, Euronews quoted Philip Crowley as telling a daily press briefing in Washington.

Mr. Crowley also noted that the United States can’t wish more than the countries involved in normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations.