OSCE Minsk Group to visit region in early March

Co-chairs of OSCE Minsk Group on Nagorno-Karabakh, Robert Bradtke (USA), Igor Popov (Russia) and Jacques Faure (France), will visit the region in early March, News.am., writes quoting diplomatic sources. The Group last visited the region in December 2011. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 per cent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - Russia, France, and the U.S. - are currently holding the 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.