OSCE MInsk Group co-chairmen (left) meet with Artsakh President Bako Sahakian

STEPANAKERT—The OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairman Thursday arrived in the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic capital where they met with Artsakh President Bako Sahakian and Defense Minister Levon Mnatsakanian to address the latest aggression by Azerbaijan, which launched a massive attack on all Karabakh fronts beginning late on April 1.

The OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs Igor Popov (Russia), Pierre Andrieu (France), James Warlick (US), and personal representative of the OSCE chairman-in-office, Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk met with Sahakian who called the dangerous aggression by Azerbaijan as one of the greatest threats to stability and peace in the South Caucasus and the neighboring regions, qualifying it as a serious challenge to the civilized world.

Sahakian said that the Artsakh Defense Army averted and would always rebuff any encroachment on the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic’s independence, sovereignty and security, adding that he expected from the OSCE Minsk Group tough and targeted response and steps toward quelling the destructive policy of Azerbaijan.

OSCE Minsk Group’s Russian Co-chair Igor Papov talks to reporters in Stepanakert (Photolure)

After the talks, Popov, the Russian Minsk Group Co-Chair, said the sides discussed the issue in Baku on Wednesday and, “We’ll later leave for Yerevan, where we will meet with the President, the Foreign Minister and the Defense Minister,” without elaborating further on the specifics of the meetings.

Before arriving in Yerevan, the Minsk Group Co-Chairs will meet with representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The Co-Chairs did not respond to any questions and said they would sum up the results of the meeting at a press conference in Yerevan on April 9.

Earlier Thursday, the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Defense Minister, Lieutenant-General Levon Mnatsakanyan had a meeting with OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs with whom he discussed the recent developments along the border of Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan and presented undeniable proof of Azerbaijani military aggression, particularly the inhumane crimes committed against the civilian population.

The Co-Chairs, in turn, reiterated the importance of solving the issue through peaceful negotiations and discussed the future steps to be implemented in that direction.