Ambassador Richard Hoagland, the recently appointed US Co-Chair of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group, has reminded Azerbaijan about the functions of this group.

Earlier, the Azerbaijan representation at the OSCE had issued a statement criticizing the actions by the leaders and the co-chairs of the Minsk Group member countries (Russia, US, and France), especially their calls for a pacific settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

In response to an inquiry by Armenian News-NEWS.am, the OSCE Secretariat in Vienna, the capital city of Austria, has sent a respective statement by Hoagland. 

“My Minsk Group Co-Chairs and I stand by our January 9 statement. We will continue to work to facilitate negotiations aimed at reaching a lasting settlement based on the principles of international law, the UN Charter, and the Helsinki Final Act, particularly the principles of territorial integrity, self-determination, and non-use of force. We will continue our efforts to help mediate a peaceful settlement as long as the sides believe our services are helpful.  In the end, however, it is the leaders themselves who must demonstrate the political will necessary to bring about a just and lasting settlement that will lead to peace and prosperity for their peoples as well as for the broader region,” reads the statement by the US co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group.