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The stance of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs towards the talks of the NKR conflict is known for a long time and no change of stance has been made. Deputy Foreign Minister Shavarsh Kocharyan told the aforesaid to the reporters during today’s briefing turning to the recent announcement of Russia’s FM Sergey Lavrov. Panorama.am reports.

“Stance of the Minsk Group Co-Chairs is also known from the statements released by them. However Azerbaijan always acted beyond them. And in this case the gross question addressed by an Azerbaijani reported led Lavrov to reveal the facts which are already evident,” Kocharyan announced.
Asked whether the reason of Lavrov’s reply was the reporter’s question or he just expressed the stance of Russia over the issue, Kocharyan noted the following:

“The Co-Chairs are usually careful in their statements. In this case the Azerbaijani reporter’s question was, excuse me, so obscene that it made Lavrov give such a response.”

Referring to the observation that in their statements the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group put an equal sign between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the RA Deputy Foreign Minister noted the following: “The statements of the Minsk Group Co-Chairs have always been like this. These statements are incomplete in a sense they lack addressing which enables Baku to act more recklessly.”

Notably at a press conference held in Moscow Russian FM Sergey Lavrov has announced that the agreements on introduction of investigation mechanisms and the expansion of the OSCE monitoring mission in the NKR conflict zone reached after the April flare-up in 2016 have not been fulfilled so far due to the lack of consensus within the OSCE.

An Azerbaijani reporter asked Russian FM whether or not “Russia will interfere in the internal affairs of Azerbaijan if it begins to liberate its occupied territories”. In response Lavrov noted that the NKR conflict settlement “is not an issue entirely referring to the internal affairs of Azerbaijan” adding that there are number of decisions over the NKR conflict.