Fourteen Parliamentarians from eight NATO Member countries visited Azerbaijan from 12 to 14 April to learn more about the most recent developments in the country and the region.

The question of Nagorno Karabakh widely dominated the meetings and the delegation was informed that the situation remains dangerous and the continuation of the conflict highly increases the risk of war.

Host country officials warned that Azerbaijan's only alternative to solve Nagorno-Karabakh would be to use military force, as, according to them, all other avenues to solve the issue peacefully have been exploited.

Official speakers stressed that Azerbaijan is interested in further developing its relations with NATO. Independent observers also suggested that the country needs to balance its foreign and security policy with those of neighboring Russia and Iran.

This NATO PA delegation was led by the Chairman of the Political Committee's Sub-Committee on NATO Partnerships, Rainer Stinner (MP, Bundestag, Germany), and met with the Azerbaijani delegation to the NATO PA, members of the Milli Mejlis' Foreign Affairs and Defence Committees, as well as senior government officials, including the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defense. The delegation also met with the OSCE representatives in Baku, as well as independent local experts. A visit to the Azerbaijani Peacekeeping Battalion concluded this visit, the website of information center of NATO in Baku reported.