Your trusted source

"2014 was controversial from the perspective of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict," stated French Co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group Pierre Andrieu in an interview with news agency APA.

"Presidents Aliyev and Sargsyan have met three times at the summits organized by presidents Putin, Hollande and the US Secretary of State John Kerry, and this fully reflects the commitments they have undertaken," the co-chair stated.

Co-chair also stated that along with many diplomatic achievements this year tense situation was registered at the line of contact between Karabakh and Azerbaijan as well as along the contact line between Armenia and Azerbaijan. As a result there were much more human losses this year than in previous years.

"The death of the civic population, and in particular the November 12th incident as a result of which military helicopter was shot down, a fact that could have been avoided, is regrettable. This serious incident has once again confirmed the necessity of reduction of tension, restoration of confidence and undertaking measures to ensure that this will not be repeated again. The statement adopted on December 4 in Basel by the FMs emphasizes this fact," said the French diplomat.

Andrieu also appealed to the Paris summit held on 27 October and noted that there was an opportunity to restore a direct dialogue between the two presidents. Three co-chairs of the Minsk Group and the Personal Representative of the OSCE were involved in the negotiations and the results were impressive.

"The presidents decided to start exchange of information on the missing during the conflict as soon as possible which is to be held under the supervision of the International Committee of the Red Cross. The ICRC has already started the work in this direction. It was decided to discuss other issues at a convenient time, and I'm sure it will happen soon. At the same time, the three presidents discussed these negotiations in detail," said Pierre Andrieu.

According to the French co-chairman, French President Francois Hollande had called on presidents Sargsyan and Aliyev to eliminate differences of opinion and to prepare their peoples for peace. "Holidays at the end of the year can be a favorable period to think over the results of this year and future plans. Negotiations and contacts with the mediation of the Minsk Group will continue in January. We hope for progress in this complex process and to intensify the dialogue between the presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia in the new meeting to be held in September 2015 in the framework of the UN General Assembly, as it was at the Paris summit," the diplomat stated.

As NKR Defense Ministry press service reported earlier, on November 12, at around 1:45 pm, Nagorno Karabakh Air Forces’ Mi-24 helicopter was shot by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces during military training flight in the airspace in the eastern section of Karabakh – Azerbaijan Line of Contact. The land, on which the incident occurred, is in close proximity to the line of contact. Opponent after the incident continued intense bombardment scene from weapons of different caliber. The place where the helicopter was shot is close to the Line of Contact. The enemy continued to fire shots from weapons of different calibers after the incident.

On 22 November the Armed Forces of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic carried out a special operation at the crash site of the Nagorno-Karabakh’s Mi-24 helicopter downed by Azerbaijan on November 12. As a result of the operation, the body of one crew member, the remains of two pilots as well as some parts of the helicopter were removed from the crash site.