Official: Azeri President, acting Armenian PM converse in Russia

PanARMENIAN.Net - President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan has had a conversation with the acting Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on the sidelines of an informal meeting of the CIS heads of state in St. Petersburg, said Hikmet Hajiyev, an aide to the Azerbaijani President.

"During the exchange of ideas, discussions were held around issues concerning the continuation of active negotiations on the settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict and the strengthening of the ceasefire," Hajiyev was quoted as saying.

According to him, it is necessary to take into account that these two aspects are very closely interrelated and are mutually complementary.

"The recent relative calm on the line of contact and along the state border creates a very good background for conducting substantive and intensive negotiations to resolve the conflict. This should not lead to a freezing of the conflict or the preservation of an unacceptable status quo," the official said.

During the brief conversation, he added, Aliyev and Pashinyan also discussed the issue of exchange of detainees between Azerbaijan and Armenia.