Staff Reporter
Islamabad
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Tuesday said that Pakistan believes in restoring Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity and sovereignty over the Nagorno-Karabakh region.
The minister expressed these views during a phone call with his Azerbaijani counterpart, Jeyhun Bayramov. In a statement, the Foreign Office (FO) said that the two discussed bilateral relations and the ongoing conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the breakaway region.
Nagorno-Karabakh, mainly inhabited by ethnic Armenians and backed by Yerevan, has been the scene of deadly clashes since September 27.
Armenia, which backs Nagorno-Karabakh but does not recognise its independence, has admitted that Azerbaijani forces have made important gains along the front in the past week.
A ceasefire in territory of Nagorno-Karabakh was under severe strain on Tuesday after new clashes between Azeri and ethnic Armenian forces.
Officials in Nagorno-Karabakh reported new artillery battles on Tuesday morning and said fighting was particularly intense in southern areas of the conflict zone.
Azerbaijan’s defence ministry also reported fighting in several areas, including disputed territory close to the line of contact that divides the sides.
“The foreign minister expressed deep concern on the deteriorating security situation in Nagorno-Karabakh and expressed full solidarity with the brotherly nation of Azerbaijan and its people at this difficult time,” the statement said.
Qureshi also expressed concern over the “reprehensible targeting and killing of civilians by Armenian forces and hoped for a peaceful resolution to the crisis in accordance with United Nations Security Council resolutions”.