Elmar Mammadyarov

'As far as I know, during the meeting of Presidents Sargsyan and Sarkozy, the French president reiterated his full support for the updated Madrid principles. Let's see what news comes from the Armenian side,' Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said today at a meeting of the deputy foreign ministers of the Caspian coastal countries in Baku.

He said that no meeting was scheduled for the Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents at present.

'The Azerbaijani side has already announced that it accepts the updated Madrid principles. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group will invite the foreign ministers to Paris to discuss the updated guidelines. Then we will define the direction of our further work with the co-chairs,' the minister said.

'We believe that the updated version of the Madrid principles creates an opportunity for the discussion of a comprehensive agreement. In my opinion, first of all, it should be accepted by the Armenian side. But the Armenian side claims that there are some points that they cannot accept. We are now working on it,' he said, without elaborating on the matters in question.

Mammadyarov said that the entire international community expected and wanted progress in resolving the Karabakh conflict with the liberation of the occupied lands and the return home of internally displaced persons.

'The only question to the leadership of Armenia is whether they are ready or not,' Mammadyarov said.

The Madrid principles include the return of the territories surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh to Azerbaijani control, an interim status for Karabakh providing guarantees for security and self-governance, and the future determination of the final legal status of Nagorno-Karabakh through a legally binding expression of will. The status of Karabakh is thought to be the key sticking point in the negotiations. Azerbaijan insists that Karabakh should remain within Azerbaijan, as is recognized by international law, while Armenia wants a different status for the territory.

Commenting on the resolution of the US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, recognizing the killings of Armenians in 1915 as 'genocide', Mammadyarov said the resolution was harmful to the Karabakh settlement.

'If members of Congress discuss the events of 100 years ago, they should also assess the recent genocide of 20 years ago that happened in Khojaly. In this sense, I do not believe that such an action would promote peace and stability in the South Caucasus,' Mammadyarov said.

He said that the decision had a negative impact on the Karabakh settlement.

'On the whole, the action has a negative impact because we believe that if the Congress adopts one-sided resolutions, despite the fact that Armenia occupies 20 percent of Azerbaijani land resulting in one million refugees and internally displaced persons, this poses the greatest threat to security in the region. Therefore, we consider that the issue of peace and stability in the South Caucasus, if discussed in Congress, should address not only the historical aspect, but also the current situation,' the minister said

Interfax-Azerbaijan