Azerbaijan says no serious progress made in Paris

No serious progress was made in talks between the Azerbaijani and Armenian leaders in Paris last month, Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said.

“I wouldn’t say serious progress was made,” Mammadyarov told reporters today in Baku. “But the meeting itself was a positive step.”

Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan and Serzh Sargsyan of Armenia met in the French capital on October 27 at the initiative of French President Francois Hollande. It was the second meeting between Aliyev and Sargsyan since tensions flared up along the ceasefire line in August. 

More than 20 soldiers were killed in the deadliest clashes in the past 20 years.

Mammadyarov said Armenia needs to withdraw its troops from Azerbaijan’s occupied territory if it wants to build confidence between the two countries. 

The minister said he may meet his Armenian counterpart, Edvard Nalbanyan, in Bazel in December on the sidelines of an OSCE meeting to prepare for a next meeting between the two presidents.

Bakudaily.Az