YEREVAN (RFE/RL)–Azeri President Haydar Aliyev invited his Armenian counterpart Robert Kocharian to attend an international conference in Baku–the Armenian foreign ministry reported on Monday.
The conference scheduled for September 7 to 8 is organized by the European Union to discuss prospects for the successful implementation of its ambitious TRACECA program– intended to restore ancient trade routes linking Europe and Central Asia via the Caucasus.
Despite numerous internationally mediated face-to-face meetings–the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan have not paid visits to each other’s country since the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict began in 1988. The two countries still have no diplomatic relations.
None of the officials in the Armenian presidential administration in a position to comment on the news was available to comment to RFE/RL.