There were very few changes in Aliyev’s recent statement and the one before that. This is what head of the My Step faction of the National Assembly of Armenia Lilit Makunts told reporters today.

“The recent statement contains an element of blackmail. What does it mean to stop negotiations? The Republic of Armenia has already given its response to that, stating that all the processes must lead to a peaceful settlement of the conflict, and the Republic of Armenia is ready and will do everything to protect the security of our compatriots in case of any other development,” she said.

Touching upon the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in an interview with several television channels, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev said the following:

“Today, in fact, there are no negotiations on the settlement; there is no sense in the videoconferences of the Foreign Ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia either. This is just an imitation of activities of the OSCE Minsk Group. If the negotiations are not substantive, we will not participate in them.”

Azerbaijan’s Aliyev says Karabakh peace talks could be stopped