There is no alternative to the trilateral statements by the leaders of Armenia, Russia, and Azerbaijan regarding the settlement of the situation in the South Caucasus. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated this at Friday’s tripartite meeting in Moscow with his visiting Armenian and Azerbaijani colleagues.

"The last time we met in this format was quite a long time ago. During this time many topics have developed, and I hope that the meeting will take place in a constructive atmosphere. And the direct dialogue between [Armenian FM] Ararat Mirzoyan and [Azerbaijani FM] Jeyhun Bayramov will enable to achieve additional results," said the Russian FM.

In this trilateral format, Lavrov proposed to consider the entire range of matters on the normalization of Armenian-Azerbaijani relations and to agree on further steps, taking into account the capabilities of Russia.

"In fact, there is a roadmap for achieving stable solutions in the tripartite statements of our leaders. We have analyzed the situation around the South Caucasus, we believe that there is no alternative to the arrangements by our leaders. Russia wants peace and stability in the region, Russian interests are directly connected here," Lavrov noted.

"The Russian Federation will make every effort to implement the decisions regarding the stabilization of the situation, hoping that they will be respected by all other countries that are interested, in one way or another, in our presence in this region," said the Russian FM.

Separately, Lavrov noted the need to stabilize the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh and on the border of Armenia and Azerbaijan, the need to solve humanitarian problems, unblock regional transport communications, and agree on the text of the peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

The Russian FM added the development of contacts between experts, NGOs, and parliamentarians, noting that such an experience had already taken place, and it will also be an important step for confidence-building.