STEPANAKERT, FEBRUARY 23, ARTSAKHPRESS:  "In different periods there was hope for a peaceful resolution of the Karabakh issue. It seemed to everyone, including the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, that the parties were close to an agreement and a solution to the issue through negotiations," he noted.

The fault lies neither with Armenia nor with the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs, he said noting that during the talks in Kazan, Azerbaijan came up with new preconditions, showing that they were not ready to resolve the issue peacefully and was actively preparing for war.