Azeri, Armenian President expected to meet in Minsk

Russian co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group Yuri Merzlyakov told ITAR-TASS in Vienna on Thursday that such an agreement was reached between the two countries' foreign ministers in Brussels two days ago.

Earlier, Armenia's Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian told RFE/RL that the issue of the presidents' meeting will be finally specified after the visit of the international negotiators to the region planned for next week.

On behalf of the OSCE Minsk Group cochairmen Yuri Merzlyakov urged the two countries' presidents to take the unique opportunity and agree on principles of the Karabakh conflict settlement, since, according to him, no such opportunity will be offered in the coming year. He said that elections will be held in Armenia and Azerbaijan in 2007-2008, which, according to him, will have a negative impact on the process of negotiations.

"Besides, key political figures that have participated in the negotiations during the last ten years from the Armenian side will start to drop from the negotiating process next year."

Merzlyakov did not expand on whom particularly he means. In the past several years Armenia's president and foreign minister have participated in the high-level talks around the Nagorno Karabakh issue. The presidential election in Armenia is due in 2008. RFE/RL