French President Francois Hollande believes that the settlement of the Karabakh conflict should be based on the principles of non-use of force, respect for the territorial integrity of states and the right to self-determination.

According to the press service of the Armenian President, at the official dinner given in honor of the Armenian leader Serzh Sargsyan in Paris, F. Hollande stated that in order to build a peaceful and secure future it is necessary to continue efforts to settle the Karabakh problem.

“Nothing can be worse than the status quo. For more than 23 years, the parties have been negotiating without certain results” F. Hollande said.

According to him, the solution has seemed close many times.

“In 2014, I took the initiative and invited you along with my Azerbaijani counterpart to Paris. We recorded progress on the fate of missing persons during the conflict, but could not move forward” F. Hollande noted.

“However, there is no alternative to the continuation of negotiations, if we all agree that a military solution to the conflict is out of the question. The terms of the settlement are known – the Madrid Principles, which are based on the principles of non-use of force, respect for the territorial integrity of states and the right to self-determination. France is ready to contribute to any initiatives in this direction” the French president emphasized.

Source: Minval.az