The Artsakh government says it will only meet with representatives of Azerbaijan in the presence and with the mediation of Russian peacekeepers.

Yesterday, Baku announced that a second meeting with “"representatives of the Armenian community of Karabakh" is planned in Baku in the coming days.

Representatives of Artsakh and Azerbaijan, with the mediation of Russian peacekeepers, met on March 1 and discussed the reopening of the Lachin Corridor and the restoration of natural gas and electricity supplies to Artsakh from Armenia.

Artsakh Presidential Spokesperson Lusineh Avanesyan reported news of the March 1 meeting to ArtsakhPress, saying the meeting was constructive and that practical outcomes “will not be long in coming”.

The Artsakh government, in a statement released yesterday, refuted Baku’s claim that “reintegration” was discussed at the March 1 meeting, saying only humanitarian, infrastructural, technical issues were on the agenda.

“As for politically settling the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict, let's repeat that Artsakh is committed to negotiations aimed at the comprehensive settlement of the conflict, which must take place in an internationally recognized and approved format, under the conditions of the presence of international guarantees of the equal rights of the parties and the fulfillment of the assumed obligations,” the Artsakh government stated.