Iran Fully Prepared to Help Settle Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict: FM
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in a Tuesday meeting with his Azeri counterpart reaffirmed Tehran’s readiness to mediate between the two sides of the ongoing conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh separatist region, where clashes erupted on late Friday night.
During the meeting, held in the northern Iranian city of Ramsar, Zarif and Elmar Mammadyarov conferred on latest regional developments as well as bilateral ties between Tehran and Baku.
Zarif pointed to the existing problems and crises in the region and among different countries, stressing that under such circumstances, all efforts should be focused on preventing fresh problems and crises.
He further underlined the need for immediate cessation of hostilities and restoration of peace to the Nagorno-Karabakh region.
Zarif pointed to his phone conversation with Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian earlier in the day, and reaffirmed that Tehran is fully prepared to use its influence to help resolve the ongoing dispute in a peaceful way.
At least 30 soldiers have been killed in fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces along the frontlines of the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Each side blames the other for the fighting.
Nagorno-Karabakh has been under the control of Armenian military and separatists since a war between Armenia and Azerbaijan ended in 1994. Years of negotiations have brought little progress in resolving the dispute.
Elsewhere in the meeting, Zarif and Mammadyarov discussed developments in the bilateral ties, trips and reciprocal visits by Iranian and Azeri officials, and required measures to expand cooperation in all fields, particularly in different economic areas.
The Azeri FM in this meeting voiced Baku’s preparedness to make investments in a railroad project connecting the Iranian cities of Qazvin and Rasht to the port city of Astara in Caspian Sea, which shares borders with Azerbaijan Republic’s Astara.
Zarif and his Azeri counterpart along with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu arrived in Ramsar on Tuesday for a trilateral meeting on closer cooperation among the three neighbors, with a focus on coordination in the fight against terrorism.