Charpentier: Status quo is not favorable neither for Yerevan, nor for  Bacu 

ArmInfo.France as co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group spares no effort in imparting momentum to the dynamics of the negotiation process on the Nagorno-Karabakh 

settlement. French Ambassador to Armenia Jean-Francois Charpentier 

stated this in an interview with Azatutyun.

According to the diplomat, Paris is interested in direct contacts 

between the parties, since the problem concerns both sides. "As you 

have already noticed, the mediators are in the region, on Monday they 

met with the president of the republic, as well as with the minister 

of foreign affairs. Yesterday and today they are already in 

Stepanakert. Therefore, the idea is to make maximum efforts to resume 

direct dialogue. And France always spoke, including during the visit 

of the Armenian President to Paris on March 8. The French leader 

again confirmed his opinion that if it is time, France is ready to 

again accept such a meeting. Another point that I would like to focus 

on is the need to introduce mechanisms of trust, since one cannot 

expect a healthy and effective dialogue in the negotiation process 

without the introduction of certain mechanisms of trust. By the way, 

agreements were reached on this issue both at the Vienna summit and 

in St. Petersburg, and this provision was approved," said 

Charpentier.

Answering the question about the reason for the continuing tension in 

the conflict zone, the French diplomat once again stated the 

unacceptability of the status quo in the conflict zone. "Obviously, 

while we are in a situation where the two countries are in danger of 

aggravating the situation and violating the ceasefire, the situation 

can not naturally be simplified. Obviously, we need to try to find a 

solution to the issue through diplomatic means, in any case, to find 

a solution that is acceptable to both parties and probably to some 

extent on the basis of mutual concessions. I understand that this 

mission requires long and hard work. The mediators maintain constant 

contact with Yerevan and Baku. I would like to reiterate the words of 

the President of France delivered during the meeting with the 

Armenian President on March 8, which were then reported to the 

Azerbaijani leader, namely, that the status quo can not last long, 

including the points of view of security. And second, none of the two 

countries benefit from maintaining this status quo, "Charpentier 

said.