By Anakhanum Khidayatova – Trend:
France doesn’t recognize “elections” in the separatist region of Azerbaijan, French Ambassador to Azerbaijan Pascal Monnier told Trend Sept. 3.
He made the remarks with regard to the “elections” to “self-government bodies” of the separatist regime in the occupied Azerbaijani territories, which are scheduled for Sept. 13.
“France does not recognize Nagorno-Karabakh as an independent state and considers therefore that the so-called elections, which are planned in Nagorno-Karabakh on Sept. 13, cannot have any effect on the ongoing peace process, nor on the future status of this territory,” said the ambassador.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council’s four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.
