Members of the Committee on Security and Defence of the Azerbaijani Parliament discussed anti-terrorist activity and the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict with the U.S Senate Committee on Foreign Relations official Marik String in Baku, the Azerbaijani parliament said.
During the meeting chairman of the parliamentary committee Siyavush Novruzov stressed the high level of development of Azerbaijani-U.S relations.
"Azerbaijan was one of the first countries which joined the anti-terrorist efforts following the events of September 11. Azerbaijani Armed Forces made a significant contribution in this activity by successful participation in peacekeeping operations in Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan", Novruzov said.
The head of the parliamentary committee informed the guest about the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. He said that the occupied territories became ground for smuggling weapons, the training of terrorist groups, transit of narcotic drugs, as well as radioactive waste.
String expressed his gratitude for the strong and permanent position of Azerbaijan in the strategic relations with the U.S.. He clarified a number of issues of interest to the committee members.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 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 resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh region and the occupied territories.
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