Armenia’s Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan on Friday had a telephone conversation with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.

Minister Mnatsakanyan and the UN Secretary General discussed the developments following the joint statement by the Prime Minister of Armenia and the Presidents of Azerbaijan and Russia on the establishment of ceasefire as of Tuesday and the deployment of Russian peacekeepers in an around the Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) conflict zone. Minister Mnatsakanyan stressed the need to hold discussions on all issues related to the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process exclusively within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs. In this regard, the UN Secretary General reaffirmed his support for this format of Co-Chairs.

Zohrab Mnatsakanyan comprehensively presented the humanitarian crisis created in Artsakh due to the Turkish-Azerbaijani military aggression, and the steps being taken by Artsakh and Armenia’s authorities to address it. The interlocutors also referred to the chances of involvement of the UN and relevant bodies in addressing the consequences of this humanitarian crisis in Artsakh.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs stressed also the need to protect and restore the rights of the displaced Artsakh Armenians, and the UN’s respective important role within the framework of the international mandate entrusted to it.

Both sides stressed the need to preserve the Armenian historical and cultural heritage that is now endangered in Artsakh due to the Azerbaijani occupation.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday night signed a joint statement on a complete cessation of hostilities in and around Artsakh. Accordingly, Russian peacekeepers will be deployed in the region to monitor the implementation of the ceasefire and the cessation of hostilities. But this statement also stipulates the handover of part of Artsakh lands to Azerbaijan.