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The OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs Igor Popov (Russia), Andrew Schofer (United States), Stephane Visconti (France) and personal representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office Andrzej Kasprzyk have summed up their regional visit to Baku and Yerevan on February 20-21.

According to the release statement, the meetings with Armenian Pm Nikola Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev were aimed at discussing preparations for a meeting of the leaders in the near future, including possible topics for discussion.

“During the meetings in the region, the leaders briefed the Co-Chairs on their recent conversation on the margins of the World Economic Forum in Davos in January. The leaders and the Co-Chairs discussed the situation on the ground and their expectations for next steps,” the statement read, adding: “The Co-Chairs assessed positively the continuing lack of casualties on the line of contact. They also welcomed the developing discussions in the region about preparing populations for peace.”

According to the statement, the leaders accepted the Minsk Group Co-Chairs’ proposal to meet soon under their auspices.

It is noted that the Co-Chairs and the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office travelled to Vienna and Bratislava from 28 February to 1 March to brief the Permanent Representatives of the OSCE Minsk Group countries, OSCE Secretary General Thomas Greminger, and OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Slovak Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajčák.