Azerbaijani, French presidents meet at Elysee Palace in Paris

Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct.27 Trend: French President Francois Hollande welcomed Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, as he arrived at the Elysee Palace in Paris, Oct.27, Reuters reported. Ilham Aliyev and his Armenian counterpart Serzh Sargsyan are expected to meet in Paris at the initiative of Hollande on Oct.27. Previously, Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents met in a trilateral meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Aug.10 in Sochi. Prior to that, Russian president held bilateral meetings with Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the U.S. are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions. Edited by SI Follow us on Twitter @TRENDNewsAgency