YURI MERZLYAKOV: PRESENCE OF ARMENIAN FORCES IN AZERBAIJAN TERRITORY SHOULD BE DISCUSSED BY PARTIES

PanARMENIAN.Net - The presence of Armenian forces in the territory of Azerbaijan must be discussed, said Yuri Merzlyakov, the Russian co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group for Karabakh settlement, when answering a question of RFI/RL whether the return of the Azeri regions, forming the security belt of Nagorno Karabakh, is on the negotiations agenda. At that the diplomat refrained from unveiling the details, saying it was an agreement on confidentiality. At that Y. Merzlyakov reported the Co-Chairs had not made new proposals. "At the current stage the consultations started in Prague between the Co-Chairs and the Armenian and Azerbaijani Foreign Ministers continue", said the Russian representative, adding the mediators' current visit also aimed at verifying and comparing their "own notion of the outcomes of the Prague consultations with that of the parties." "The Prague consultations are kind of talks about talks, where the coming agenda is worked out," Merzlyakov continued. "And there are issues both parties agree to put on the discussion agenda. However, as they have not been discussed in depth, it is hard to say whether there are such questions on which the parties' opinions coincide. The time will come for it as well," the Russian mediator concluded.