Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has arrived in the city of Astrakhan in south European Russia, where on Wednesday he will meet with the Azerbaijani and Armenian leaders.
Medvedev, Ilham Aliyev and Serzh Sargsyan are to discuss the Nagorny Karabakh peace process.
The conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorny Karabakh, a predominantly ethnic Armenian region, first erupted in 1988, when the region claimed independence from Azerbaijan to join Armenia.
Over 30,000 people are estimated to have died on both sides between 1988 and 1994, when a ceasefire was agreed. Nagorny Karabakh has remained in Armenian control and tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia have persisted.
In May, the region elected a 33-seat parliament with a voter turnout of almost 68%. Azerbaijani officials called the elections "illegal," saying they could seriously harm peace efforts.
The OSCE Minsk Group, comprising the United States, Russia and France, was created in 1992 to encourage a peaceful, negotiated resolution to the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over Nagorny Karabakh.
ASTRAKHAN, October 26 (RIA Novosti)
