YEREVAN—The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group expressed concern on Sunday over the recent deaths on the Artsakh-Azerbaijan line of contact (LoC).
“The Co-Chairs call upon the Sides to take additional steps to reduce tensions, as agreed in Geneva, and to respect the ceasefire. The Co-Chairs also call upon the Sides to refrain from inflammatory statements and provocative actions,” read a part of a press statement released by the group.
OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs Igor Popov of Russia, Stephane Visconti of France, and Andrew Schofer of the United States, along with the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Andrzej Kasprzyk, met with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Baku on Feb. 7 and Armenian President Serge Sarkisian in Yerevan on Feb. 9. In both capitals, they also held consultations with the respective foreign ministers.
The co-chairs also traveled to Artsakh Feb. 9-11 to meet with what they term the “de facto authorities” there and visited several locations around the republic.
It their statement, the co-chairs underscored the importance of fulfilling, in good faith, all commitments undertaken during the Oct. 2017 Summit in Geneva and at previous summits—in particular, the Vienna and St. Petersburg summits.
“The Co-Chairs reiterate their commitment to helping the Sides find a peaceful solution to the conflict based on the core principles of the Helsinki Act, including the non-use of force, territorial integrity, and the equal rights and self-determination of peoples,” read a part of the statement, which also noted that the co-chairs welcomed the parties’ expressed intention to continue intensive negotiations.
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