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U.S. Permanent Representative to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), James S. Gilmore delivered remarks on the armed incident along the Armenian-Azerbaijan international border at the OSCE Permanent Council meeting in Vienna on Thursday, July 16.

He cited the July 15 press statement issued by the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs that welcomed the decrease in hostilities at that time and appealed to both sides to make every effort to continue de-escalation. The co-chairs also urged the sides to refrain from inflammatory rhetoric and any attempts to change the situation on the ground.

“I wanted to make all the countries assembled here today aware of the contents of their press release,” he said.

“In addition, I wish to simply state that yesterday the three Permanent Representatives of France, the United States, and the Russian Federation, along with other members of the Minsk Group, were briefed in our national capacities by the co-chairs. At that time, I, in my individual capacity, stated that it was important for the co-chairs to be transparent and active, and to be in a position to aid in mediation and response, if that occasion presented itself in accordance with the Minsk process,” Gilmore stated.

He also referred to the statements of U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Spokesperson for the U.S. State Department Morgan Ortagus in which the United States condemned in the strongest terms the violence along the border and urged the sides to stop using force immediately and to strictly adhere to the ceasefire.

“The United States is strongly committed to helping the sides achieve a lasting peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and we will remain active in efforts to accomplish that goal,” the representative said.