BAKU. March 14 (Interfax) - Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev believes there is a good chance to reach an agreement with Armenia to normalize Armenian-Azerbaijani relations.
"I believe there is a good chance to reach an agreement given that Armenia and Azerbaijan recognize each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty, especially after the meeting in Sochi last October. We have elaborated five principles based on international law, which, in our opinion, should lay the foundation of a peace treaty," Aliyev said during a meeting with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Berlin on Tuesday.
In his words, Azerbaijan's stance on the normalization of relations with Armenia consists of two tracks: the first is the signing of a peace treaty between Azerbaijan and Armenia, the second is to hold a dialogue with the Armenian residents of Karabakh.
According to a statement on the Azerbaijani leader's website, when speaking of Karabakh, Aliyev emphasized the unacceptability of any manifestations of separatism, stressing the importance of displaying a common position on the separatist trends.
In this regard, Aliyev said at a meeting with Steinmeier that representatives of the Karabakh Armenian community had been invited to Baku by the Azerbaijani Presidential Executive Office to continue contacts on reintegration issues and implementation of a number of infrastructure projects.
"Speaking about the situation on the Lachin road, the president said that Armenia's claims about the blockade of this road are absolutely unfounded. He noted that the traffic on the road is secured, as since December 12, more than 4,000 vehicles and more than 150 people in need of medical assistance have freely passed on the road," the statement said.
Aliyev added that the Azerbaijani party is concerned about the presence of Armenian Armed Forces in the territories of Azerbaijan, where Russian peacekeepers are temporarily stationed, and about the use of the Lachin road for military and military transport purposes.
The Azerbaijani leader also believes that Armenia has failed to fulfill its obligations to open the Zangezur corridor under the trilateral Declaration, and briefed Steinmeier on Baku's proposal to set up a relevant checkpoint on the border between Azerbaijan and Armenia when entering and leaving the Lachin road.
For his part, Steinmeier said that Germany supports the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan and said he hoped for the conclusion of a peace treaty between Baku and Yerevan. The German president also said he backed the "Brussels format" under the auspices of European Council President Charles Michel and said he hoped for a new meeting in Brussels in the format of Aliyev, Pashinyan and Michel.