MOSCOW, Dec 22 Meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the Russian Federation, Armenia and Azerbaijan, where they were supposed to discuss the preparation of a peace treaty, was scheduled for December 23, but Yerevan refused to participate, the Russian Foreign Ministry reported. Azerbaijan and Armenia to discuss the preparation of a peace treaty,» the ministry's website said in a statement.
In addition, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had a telephone conversation with Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun on Thursday Bayramov.
«The situation in the zone of responsibility of the Russian peacekeeping contingent, aggravated due to the closure of the Lachin corridor and disagreements between the parties on the development of ore deposits in the region, was discussed,» — The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
During the conversation, the ministry added, Lavrov stressed the need to comply with trilateral agreements on ensuring communication between Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia along the Lachin corridor. During the conversation, the importance of continuing work on the implementation of the tripartite statements of the leaders of the Russian Federation, Azerbaijan and Armenia was also emphasized.
The Russian Ministry of Defense previously reported that on December 12, the Azerbaijani side blocked the Stepanakert-Goris road, the only highway that connects Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia, in connection with which the command of the Russian peacekeeping contingent is negotiating with representatives of Azerbaijan on the resumption of the unimpeded movement of civilian transport in this direction. The US State Department also called on the Azerbaijani side to unblock the Lachin corridor. Baku calls what is happening a protest action of civil activists and environmentalists against the «illegal activities of the Armenian side».