EU Envoy Sees 'Momentum' In Karabakh Talks

BAKU -- Peter Semneby, the European Union's special representative to the South Caucasus, told RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service that there is "clearly momentum" to resolve the status of the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Semneby added on July 15 that after the Russia-Georgia war in August "there was a sense in both Armenia and Azerbaijan that the current standoff might be more dangerous than they had estimated in the past, and that any instability in the region may have very dangerous consequences."

He also pointed out that Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev have been meeting at an "unprecedented pace."

The two will meet in Moscow again on July 17 for talks.

Though Semneby said he wouldn't "dare" try to predict when to expect a resolution on Nagorno-Karabakh, he said he expects to see "a significant step forward" that the EU would support.