"The frozen conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh may flare up with renewed vigor at any time. International mediators, despite speaking in favor of preserving the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, for some reason prefer not to take a clear stance. We expect the co-chairing countries, as well as the international community, to take concrete steps for a just resolution of the conflict," Mammadov said in an article published in the Azerbaijan newspaper.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have been engaged in a dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh since 1988, when the autonomous region left the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic and proclaimed independence after the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. The secession triggered a war that lasted until a Russia-brokered ceasefire was signed in 1994.
Violence escalated in Nagorno-Karabakh on April 2, and led to multiple casualties. The parties to the conflict signed a Russia-brokered ceasefire on April 5, but mutual accusations have persisted.
The OSCE Minsk Group, co-chaired by France, Russia and the United States, has been attempting to resolve the conflict since 1992.
