Russia Calls Azerbaijan and Armenia to Restore Dialogue on Karabakh Settlement

MOSCOW — Moscow urges the parties to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to renounce the use of force and to show political will to reach a compromise, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Wednesday.

“Unfortunately, the renewal of political dialogue gets more complicated because of escalation of situation in the conflict zone, increased number of victims, including civilians,” she said, adding that “further escalation is simply inadmissible.”

“We believe that further escalation is simply unacceptable. We urge the parties to renounce the use of force, to demonstrate the political will necessary to reach a compromise,” Zakharova said.

A settlement to the conflict was discussed during the foreign ministers’ of Armenia and Azerbaijan visit to Moscow in April-May, Zakharova noted.

“It is also a subject of ongoing contacts of [Russian Foreign Minister] Sergei Lavrov with his foreign colleagues,” the ministry’s spokeswoman added.

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group, co-chaired by the United States, Russia and France, has been mediating the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict since 1992.

According to Zakharova, Russia closely cooperates with the United States and France on the Nagorno-Karabakh issue.