The Azerbaijani president, Ilham Aliyev, has said that he is ready to meet with the Armenian prime minister, Nikol Pashinyan, if the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs offered to organise such a meeting.
Speaking in an interview with French broadcaster France 24 on Tuesday (28 September), Aliyev said that Azerbaijan has never objected to any high-level contacts, even during the war or occupation. "On the contrary, we believe that these contacts can answer questions on both sides and be a new starting point for the development of the region. Our position is very clear. We believe that the conflict has been resolved, there should be no return to the past, there should be no signs of revanchism in Armenia. We are all about the future."
Asked if he was ready to call Prime Minister Pashinyan to say this, Aliyev said, "Usually, contacts between the two leaders took place within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group. They offered an agenda, they organized meetings. In my presidential experience, I never had a telephone conversation with any Armenian leader. This approach is probably not the right way to do it. But if the Minsk Group co-chairs propose such a meeting, of course, we will not oppose it."