YEREVAN/BAKU (ARMENIA/AZERBAIJAN) – Armenia said on Friday it was willing to work with Russia, the United States and France to bring a cessation of hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh as the death toll continued to climb for the sixth straight day of clashes with Azerbaijan troops.
Azerbaijan did not respond to a call for a ceasefire on Thursday by the three countries, which are co-chairs of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group.
On Tuesday, Azerbaijan’s president, Ilham Aliyev, dismissed the possibility of talks with Armenia over the contested region in the South Caucasus and the country’s ally Turkey said on Thursday the three big powers should have no role in brokering peace in the region.
“It is obvious that Armenia is not interested in resolving the conflict through negotiations and is trying to annex the occupied territories,” said the Azeri Foreign Ministry in a statement.
In a statement, French President Emmanuel Macron said he had spoken on the phone with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Aliyev, and proposed a new way to restart negotiations with the Minsk group.
He said that efforts would begin from Friday and he stepped up his initiative to broker mediation as co-chair of the OSCE Minsk group.
The Armenian government said the prime minister and the French president said any use of mercenaries and terrorists in the conflict was unacceptable and that Macron demanded an immediate cessation of hostilities.
Both sides trade accusations of employing mercenaries from overseas for the military operations.
Pashinyan also had talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Both leaders expressed concern over the presence of illegal armed militants from the Middle East in the fighting.
Putin reiterated the need for an immediate ceasefire.