In a press briefing on Monday (6 March), the spokesperson for the US State Department Ned Price has said that Washington is not trying to compete with Moscow over Nagorno-Karabakh mediation between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Responding to a question from a journalist who wanted to "give [Price] a chance to make [his] case why the Western mediation [he thinks] is the way to go", Ned Price responded:
"This is a question for the parties themselves, and we are not going to put ourselves against any other offer of mediation, and in fact we’re not a mediator. We are a partner to the two countries. I think we have demonstrated both in word and in deed the nature of our relationship with the two countries, our ability to bring the two countries together, our willingness and readiness to help bring about additional progress in relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan."
Price continued:
"We are not doing this as a means by which to compete with Moscow. We are doing this in an effort to bring about the settlement and resolution of a longstanding dispute between these two countries, and unfortunately a dispute that has consistently taken lives, just as it did on March 5th. Our interest here is in peace and security. It’s in the interests of the people of Armenia and Azerbaijan as well."
Click here to read more about the 5 March shootout between Karabakh Armenian police officers and the Azerbaijani military, which resulted in five people losing their lives.
source: commonspace.eu with US State Department
photo: US State Department