Syrian does not want worsening of the Karabakh problem, Syrian President Bashar Asad said at a joint news conference with his Armenian counterpart Serzh Sargsyan in Yerevan on June 17, News Armenia reported.
"Of course, this is a difficult problem, but we do not want its worsening, as from the Middle East experience, we know that it will be difficult to solve this issue in this case," the Syrian president noted.
The president said he wanted to know Armenia's position in the Karabakh problem before his visit to Azerbaijan.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 surrounding districts. Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - Russia, France, and the U.S. - are currently holding the peace negotiations.