President Hassan Rouhani voiced Iran's readiness to resolve the ongoing dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh region.






President Rouhani made the remarks in a telephone conversation with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Wednesday.

"It is important for us to stop these conflicts, and we expect the two countries to take a step in this direction with tact and restraint," the Iranian president said.

"War and conflict are not a good solution to problems and disputes and will complicate the situation," President Rouhani added while emphasizing Iran's readiness to mediate between Armenia and Azerbaijan to overcome their existing problems.

He underlined that stability and security can be the bedrock of development, adding, "Our region cannot withstand instability and a new war."

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan,�for his part, said that any tension and conflict would be to the detriment of all countries in the region and welcomed any practical initiative to stop the violence.

Fighting between Azerbaijan and Armenian forces over the breakaway territory of Nagorno-Karabakh entered the fourth day on Wednesday in the biggest eruption of their decades-old conflict since a 1994 ceasefire.

Conflict in the Nagorno-Karabakh region began following the breakdown of the Soviet Union in the late 1980s and lasted till approximately 1994, with both Armenia and Azerbaijan claiming this strategic territory. At that time, the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh had held a referendum boycotted by Azerbaijan where the people chose independence over joining either of the two countries.


Source: IRNA