Press Statement by the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group following their meeting with the Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan

BRUSSELS, 12 July 2018- ‎ The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group (Igor Popov of the Russian Federation, Stephane Visconti of France and Andrew Schofer of the United States of America) hosted an introductory meeting between Foreign Minister of Armenia Zohrab Mnatsakanyan and Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Elmar Mammadyarov on 11 July in Brussels. Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Andrzej Kasprzyk also participated in the meeting. This was the first high-level meeting between the sides in this format since elections in Armenia and Azerbaijan.

The Ministers exchanged views regarding the situation on the ground and discussed next steps and parameters for re-engaging in substantive negotiations. The sides considered several issues for future meetings, including a range of possible confidence-building measures.

The Co-Chairs ‎stressed the importance of reducing tensions and avoiding inflammatory rhetoric. The Co-Chairs also reiterated their commitment to helping the sides find a peaceful solution to the conflict based on the core principles of the Helsinki Final Act, including the non-use or threat of force, territorial integrity, and the equal rights and self-determination of peoples.

The Ministers agreed to meet again in the near future under the auspices of the Co-Chairs.