Russia can play a key role in solving the border issue between Armenia and Azerbaijan, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club in Sochi on Thursday, Interfax reports.
“The most important thing now is to finally settle the situation on the border [between Armenia and Azerbaijan]. And here, of course, nothing can be done without the participation of Russia,” Putin said.
“Here we, perhaps, do not need anyone, except for the two sides and Russia. There are very simple and pragmatic things: yes, there are maps in the General Staff of the Russian army, which show how the borders of the two Soviet republics passed in the Soviet period,” the Russian President noted.
He added that “there are things that require mutual compromises – to align something, somewhere, exchange something somewhere.”
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At the same time, he stressed that Moscow is also considering a multilateral option for resolving this situation, in particular the OSCE Minsk Group. “We are working on this, including with our partners, it is important to achieve the main goal – the security situation and the construction of future relations in a positive way,” the President said.
He reminded that the trilateral statement provides for a possible extension of the stay of the Russian peacekeeping contingent in the conflict zone. “But that’s not the point, what’s the most important is how to build relations between the two countries, and I hope that we will be able to do this,” Putin stated.