Russia supports Azerbaijan, Armenia to conclude peace agreement

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) – Russia on Wednesday said it supports the political will of Azerbaijan and Armenia to conclude a peace agreement.

The signing of the peace treaty will be useful both for the two countries and for the stability and peace of the entire region, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said at a news conference in Moscow.

"We hope that this will happen as soon as possible. Of course, not at the expense of quality. Therefore, we are waiting with everyone for this work to be completed," he said.

According to Peskov, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan did not hold talks on the sidelines of the Dec. 26 informal summit of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in Saint Petersburg.

However, the event gave its participants an opportunity to discuss the most acute issues, he noted.

This September, the Azerbaijani army initiated an anti-terrorism operation in Karabakh to establish constitutional order in the region, which put an end to more than 30 years of Armenian occupation of the region.