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Armenia believes that the question of whether to continue the process under the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s (OSCE) Minsk Group should be considered “within the context of signing a peace treaty” with Azerbaijan, RFE/RL’s Armenian Service reported, citing the country’s Foreign Ministry.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev recently stated that Armenia is refusing to jointly apply for the dissolution of the Minsk Group. The group was established in 1992 to advance international mediatory efforts to achieve a negotiated peace for the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh region, to be dissolved.

Meanwhile, among other things, Azerbaijan is demanding that Armenia agree to this dissolution before a peace treaty can be signed between the two South Caucasus countries.

In a written reply to a request by RFE/RL’s Armenian Service to comment on Azerbaijan’s demand, the Armenian Foreign Ministry said: “The Armenian side may consider the issue of the continuation of the Minsk process within the context of the comprehensive settlement of relations and, first of all, the conclusion of a peace treaty.”

For over three decades the United States, France and Russia have co-chaired the OSCE Minsk Group, seeking a diplomatic solution to the long-standing conflict.