Azerbaijani Defence Minister meets PACE rapporteur

Baku, September 15, AZERTAC Azerbaijani Defense Minister Zakir Hasanov has today met rapporteur of the PACE committee on political affairs and democracy for the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict Robert Walter. The Minister informed the rapporteur on the current military and political situation in the region, the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, and said more than one million Azerbaijanis have been refugees and IDPs for more than 20 years. Hasanov said Armenia continues to roughly violate the norms and principles of international law, and spoke of the reasons which increase the tension on the troops` line of contact. Walter recalled his visit to Azerbaijan earlier this year to make a report on the escalation of violence in the conflict zone, saying his request to visit the line of contact was positively welcomed.