(MENAFN- AzerNews)
Sabina Mammadli read more Russia is focused on a meeting under the '3+3' format
(Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Iran, Russia, Türkiye), Russian
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in Baku.
The minister made the remarks during a joint conference with his
Azerbaijani counterpart, entitled 'Russian-Azerbaijani relations in
the 21st century: Strategic partnership in the context of regional
security' held as part of the 3rd meeting of the Russia-Azerbaijan
Expert Council in Baku.
He stated that preparations are underway for the meeting, noting
that such a meeting was held before, in which Georgia refused to
partake.
'This platform contributes to the creation of multifaceted
cooperation for both the countries of the region and their
neighbors. We also agreed to continue mutual activities within the
framework of the Caspian Five, and we also talked about our mutual
relations on serious issues required by international cooperation
organizations,' the minister said.
The Russian minister expressed his country's appreciation of the
political ties between the two countries and invited Bayramov to
Moscow.
'We highly appreciate the bilateral political ties between
Azerbaijan and Russia. Last year alone, our presidents met 7 times
and had 12 telephone conversations,' Lavrov added.
Economic ties
Further, Bayramov noted the agile development of trade
relations, stressing that the trade turnover between the two states
increased by 24 percent in 2022. He also noted that cargo traffic
along the North-South corridor increased by 50 percent in 2022.
'Azerbaijan cooperates with 80 Russian regions, and this
cooperation is developing dynamically,' the Azerbaijani foreign
minister said.
Moreover, he informed that the number of people traveling from
one country to another has increased, with the number of fights
between the two countries reaching 135 per week
Talking about the North-South project, Lavrov expressed Russia's
interest in cooperation in this regard and its readiness to move to
the practical implementation of the project's missing
components.
'We are interested in cooperation in the liberated territories,
in the energy sector, as well as the implementation of
megaprojects. Also, an economic forum between Azerbaijan and Russia
will be held in Moscow this year,' he added.
He also added that discussions are underway on the construction
of the Rasht-Astara section.
'Baku and Moscow are in constant talks on issues of transport
cooperation. Our presidential administrations are directly involved
in the process of creating transport links, including on the
Rasht-Astara section. Russia and Azerbaijan play a leading role
here,' he stressed.
Peace treaty
The conference also touched on the normalization of
Azerbaijani-Armenian ties, where the Azerbaijani official pointed
out that Armenia demonstrates an unconstructive position towards
the work on a peace treaty.
'If at the initial stage of the process Armenia was throwing in
some ideas that were never spoken out, attempts to give this treaty
some kind of abstract framework nature, at the next stages of the
negotiation process, Armenia moved away from this position,
probably understanding its absurdity. But then we witnessed other
surprises when at the end of December, literally a day before the
scheduled and pre-agreed face-to-face meeting in Moscow for the
third round of negotiations on the text of the peace agreement,
Armenia refused to participate in this format,' he said.
The official then noted that Armenia's position on the
normalization of relations has become more destructive after the
start of the EU mission.
Similarly, Lavrov stressed that the latest statements of
Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan about Russia's military presence in
Armenia creating security threats for the republic“remain entirely
on his own conscience”.
He then reiterated that Russia is ready to contribute to the
signing of the peace agreement between the two states, noting that
Baku has agreed to the next meeting to be held in Moscow. However,
he added that Armenia has not stated a clear position on the
matter.
Furthermore, Jeyhun Bayramov emphasized that the agenda of Baku
and Moscow on peace in the region and on the fight against
revanchism almost coincide.
Lachin protests
Moreover, Bayramov emphasized that the peaceful rally of
Azerbaijani eco-activists on the Lachin-Khankandi road is aimed at
stopping the gross violation by Armenia of its use, noting that the
misuse of the road should not be repeated.
'The root cause of this situation was a gross and repeated
violation by Armenia of the provisions of the trilateral
declaration, which provides for the sole humanitarian nature of the
use of the Lachin-Khankandi road. For two years, Azerbaijan has
repeatedly pointed out this misuse and gross violations by
Armenia,' he added.
The official underlined that after the situation reached the
level of protests, Armenia refused to change its position and
attempted to place all responsibility on Azerbaijan and Russia.
He then stressed that Armenia is actively engaged in a
propaganda campaign, trying to mislead the international community
and create buzz around this situation by refusing constructive
dialogue and attempts to find solutions.
'From the first day, Azerbaijan stated that we are doing and
will do everything in its power to avoid any negative humanitarian
consequences, primarily for the Armenian population living in the
Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. And for more than two months,
Azerbaijan has been consistently engaged in this, being in almost
daily contact with the peacekeeping contingent as well as with the
International Committee of the Red Cross. The legitimate demand of
representatives of the Azerbaijani civil society representatives
must be heard and fulfilled,' he said.
Lavrov added that the road should only be used for the
transportation of humanitarian cargo and that the parties are
working together to reach this agreement.
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Sabina Mammadli is AzerNews' staff journalist, follow her on
Twitter: @sabinammdl