22 November 2017•Update: 22 November 2017
By Cigdem Alyanak
ISTANBUL
Russia has the power to solve the decades-long Karabakh dispute between Azerbaijan and Armenia, Turkish president said Wednesday.
"Russia, Mr. [Vladimir] Putin is the force which can solve this issue," Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters in Istanbul before leaving an economic meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
His comments came in response to a question on whether he was planning to bring up the issue with his Russian counterpart.
"I have already told [Putin] that I expect him to show sensitivity to this matter," Erdogan said. "I will bring it up again if I find an opportunity to do so as there is a trilateral meeting today."
The president is scheduled to meet Putin and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in Russia's coastal city of Sochi later on Wednesday to discuss progress made in the Syrian peace talks in Astana, Kazakhstan as well as the changes in de-escalation zones across the war-torn country.
"Karabakh is our personal issue. We cannot leave it aside," Erdogan added.
Occupied Karabakh is recognized as Azerbaijani territory by the international community but was taken over by Armenian secessionists as the Soviet Union broke up in the late 1980s.
Karabakh broke away from Azerbaijan in 1991 with Armenian military support, and a peace process has yet to be implemented.
Despite a 1994 peace deal, border skirmishes are a frequent occurrence. In April 2016, these escalated into the worst outbreak of fighting since the war, resulting in the deaths of more than 270 military personnel.
Last month, the presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia agreed to reduce tension over occupied Karabakh and speed up talks to resolve the conflict.
