"I would like to focus your attention on the discussions on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict at the meetings of the PACE Standing Committee and the Bureau in Yerevan," he said. "On behalf of the Azerbaijani delegation, I would like to express my appreciation to PACE chairman Jean-Claude Mignon. On his initiative, we have held a lot of meetings. We also tried to invite the Armenian delegation to these meetings because it is time they talk about the settlement of the conflict with us. The Council of Europe adopted documents relating to the conflict. In this regard I recall the resolution No 1416, which is a fundamental document on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. So I hope that Armenian colleagues, jointly participating in meetings with Azerbaijani colleagues, to sit down at the negotiating table and decide to start discussing the issue."
This report allows the monitoring of the situation in different European countries during the current democratic crisis, he said.
"It is interesting to see the situation in various European countries during this crisis of democracy," he said. "The discussion of reports allows us to properly understand the situation in European countries. Presidential elections in Azerbaijan will be held in October by fully respecting the international rules. We are ready to receive the CE observation mission, including during the pre-election period. I invite my colleagues in the Assembly to take part in the observation mission because these elections are very important for the future of Azerbaijan and the entire region. One must not forget that after Azerbaijan, elections will be held in Georgia. Can you imagine the interest in these presidential elections in our region?"
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions of Azerbaijan since.
Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - Russia, France and the U.S. are currently holding peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council`s four resolutions on the liberation of the occupied territories.
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