Georgia, Armenia Foreign Ministers speak in phone call

Georgia’s Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze has spoken on the phone with his Armenian counterpart Edward Nalbandyan about the current fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani troops in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Last night the Georgian official instigated the phone conversation following a similar talk with Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov.

"The Georgian Foreign Minister expressed his extreme concern over the recent escalation of the situation in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone along the Line of Contact, which resulted in casualties, inter alia, among the peaceful population,” Georgia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Janelidze said cessation of hostilities and ensuring peace on the ground was of "vital importance”.

He underlined continued fighting would aggravate the current situation and have a negative impact on regional stability.

During the conversation, the Georgian official put particular emphasis on the need to use all possible formats to deescalate the situation through the involvement of the international community.

Yesterday Janelidze spoke on the phone with his Azerbaijani counterpart. The two officials also discussed the importance of solving the situation in a peaceful manner.

Heavy fighting in the disputed territory began on Friday night and continued through the following days, killing dozens.

Official Tbilisi said Georgia, as a neighbour to Armenia and Azerbaijan, would do its best to deescalate conflict between these countries over the Nagorno-Karabakh territory.