French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday September 27 called on his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliev to respect “territorial integrity” of Armenia, with which Azerbaijan is in conflict. During a telephone interview, Emmanuel Macron again called Baku at “return to respecting the ceasefire and maintaining the (Azerbaijani) forces in their initial positions”noted the French presidency.
Deadly clashes, which left nearly 300 dead, broke out on September 13 on the border between the two countries, which mutually blame each other for the fighting, the most violent since the war in 2020 for control of the enclave of Nagorny Karabakh.
Two wars in the last three decades
The French president also told President Aliyev the “availablity” of the Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian, whom he received on Monday at the Elysée, in “continue negotiations on all pending issues, and that of France to contribute to them”. On Monday, Emmanuel Macron called on Armenia and Azerbaijan to engage “without delay” negotiations to reach a “lasting peace”.
Armenia, an ally of Russia, and Azerbaijan, backed by Turkey, have clashed in two wars over the past three decades for control of Nagorny Karabakh, a predominantly Armenian-populated enclave attached to the Azerbaijan, and having unilaterally declared its independence in 1991.