Wednesday, July 22 2015 14:29

The status quo in the Nagorno-Karabakhconflict is unacceptable for theEuropean Union, Donald Tusk, President of the European Council, said on July 22 during a press conference with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.

APA quotes Tusk as saying, "There is no alternative to a peaceful settlement of the conflict." The EU needs a peaceful settlement, Tusk said. "I think we should refrain not only from military operations, but also from radical tone, hostility and statements inciting hatred. These points don't serve the resolution of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. We should avoid this rhetoric, because we don't need conflicts. Ukraine events are the most obvious example of this kind of policy, ideology and attitudes. The EU supports the OSCE Minsk Group. The OSCE efforts make an international format determined for the resolution of the conflict. We hope that the restoration of peace will be based on the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairing countries. The presidents discussed it. You can be disappointed in some points. But I think that we need to be more patient. We should be sure that we are doing our best to solve the problem," APA quotes Tusk as saying.  

In the meantime, Tusk said that the European Union "supports the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Azerbaijan." "The EU wants a peaceful resolution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The settlement of the conflict must be a priority for us," he said. 

Ilham Aliyev, in turn, said: "Today, we discussed regional issues, including the ways to resolve the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. I talked to him about the process of negotiations, gave information about the history of the conflict. This conflict is going on for two decades.  Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory is under occupation. The UN Security Council adopted 4 resolutions on unconditional withdrawal of Armenian troops from Azerbaijan." "We want the conflict to be resolved within the norms and principles of international law. We hope that more pressure will be put on the occupant for returning the Azerbaijani territories and completing the negotiation process. In the future, we will be able to talk about normalizing relations. Azerbaijan's territorial integrity is as a valuable notion as territorial integrity of other countries," APA quotes Aliyev as saying.