US and France Show No Will to Resume Work of OSCE Minsk Group, Says Russian MFA

The American and French co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group have not expressed any readiness to resume the activities of this mechanism in the context of the peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan, according to the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova.

Zakharova made these statements in response to questions from the media, which were published on the Russian Foreign Ministry's website. “We are not expecting them. The aforementioned 'high diplomatic activity' has noticeably increased after Washington and Paris effectively paralyzed the once well-coordinated work of the three co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group by refusing to collaborate with our participation,” Zakharova stated.

She emphasized that such coincidences are not accidental. Additionally, she criticized Brussels for its shameless attempts to appropriate the topic of the well-known agreements between Russia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia at the highest level, including those concerning the delimitation and demarcation of the state border between Azerbaijan and Armenia, as well as the restoration of transport communications and the agenda proposed last year by the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs (urgent humanitarian problem-solving and preparation for a peace treaty between Baku and Yerevan).

“Against this backdrop, we reaffirm our unconditional commitment to the consistent implementation of the declarations made by the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia on November 9, January 11, and November 26, 2020. At the same time, we are determined to contribute to all possible avenues for the signing of a peace treaty between Azerbaijan and Armenia, with which we are historically linked through ties of friendship, alliance, and partnership,” Zakharova concluded.