Official Baku achieves goal - France reconciles with new realities in Caucasus

Yesterday, a video conference initiated by French President Emmanuel Macron with the participation of President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, Macron as the French presidency of the European Union, President of the European Council Charles Michel, and Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan shows once again that the head of state of Azerbaijan is ready for meetings that can always yield results by pursuing an independent policy, MP, member of the board of the New Azerbaijan Party (NAP) Javid Osmanov told Report.

According to him, the joint statement of Michel and Macron allows to assess this meeting as another crucial diplomatic success of Azerbaijan: "According to the essence of the conferences held in Moscow, Sochi, and Brussels, the document does not refer to the Minsk Group. On the other hand, it does not mention the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict or even the Karabakh term. This confirms the complete removal of the word from the lexicon and the complete removal of the Karabakh issue from the agenda. France already accepts this reality as a co-chair of the Minsk Group."

He said that France joined the meeting not as a co-chair of the Minsk Group but as chairman of the European Union: "It shows that the successful peace agenda established in Brussels continues. The agenda includes the normalization of Armenian-Azerbaijani relations, the opening of the Zangazur corridor, the determination of the fate of missing persons, assistance to Azerbaijan in clearing mines, and building confidence. The meeting focused on the normalization of Armenian-Azerbaijani relations, humanitarian issues between the two nations, and opening a transport corridor by rail and road. One of the most important issues discussed was the mine problem facing Azerbaijan, the opening of communications, and the start of negotiations on a peace agreement. It was also agreed to send a UNESCO mission to Azerbaijan and Armenia."

Osmanov stressed that President Ilham Aliyev touched upon many important issues during his speech at the meeting:

"In his speech, the head of state stressed the fate of those missing during the First Karabakh War and that the location of mass graves should be provided by Armenia with precise coordinates. At the meeting, President Ilham Aliyev also raised the issue of the disappearance of a total of 3,890 Azerbaijani citizens, including 71 children, 267 women, and 326 older people, during the First Karabakh War. As you know, our state is currently working hard to clear the liberated areas of mines. Unfortunately, the percentage of accuracy of the mine maps provided by Armenia is meager. This is one of the factors complicating our work. During the meeting, President Ilham Aliyev paid special attention to increasing international support for Azerbaijan in demining the liberated territories. I think that the results of yesterday's meeting and the views expressed in the statement are another diplomatic victory of Azerbaijan under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev."