Russia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov today held separate phone talks with his Azerbaijani and Armenian counterparts Jeyhun Bayramov and Zohrab Mnatsakanyan.

As reported the press service of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the foreign ministers discussed the development of the situation in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone. The Russian side expressed serious concern over the ongoing large-scale hostilities, made a call for immediate ceasefire and de-escalation and prevention of provocative and bellicose rhetoric and underscored the need for the sides to return to the negotiating table urgently.

Lavrov emphasized that Russia will continue to make efforts with its national capacity and joint mediation efforts along with the other OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs in order to create conditions for a political and diplomatic settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The Russian side expressed its willingness to provide a platform in Moscow to host meetings, including the subsequent meeting of the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan, Armenia and Russia.