High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice President of the Commission Catherine Ashton Armenia and Azerbaijan, as partner countries, to step up their efforts to reach agreement on the Madrid principles, as a basis for peace, and to implement fully the commitments made by their Presidents in the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group.

APA reports quoting Armenian press that Ashton said progress in the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is vital.

High Representative also expressed her concern at the serious armed incidents in early June along the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan and the Line of Contact in the context of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, and regretted the loss of life as well as the hardship of those affected by the conflict.

Ashton issued this statement after a meeting with Armenian president Serzh Sargsyan in Brussels.

APA