YEREVAN (RFE-RL)–On the first leg of their regional tour–the French–Russian and US co-chairs of the OSCE’s Minsk Group met on Sunday with senior representatives of political parties in Armenian parliament. The meeting was held in the US embassy.
According to Orinats Yerkir party representative–Mher Shahgeldian–the meeting aimed to "make clear" to everyone that delay in the settlement of Mountainous Karabagh conflict would bring no dividends to either side.
"They were also seeking better understanding of the positions and approaches of the policy makers and politicians who are able to influence public opinion in Armenia," he added.
On Monday the co-chairs held talks with President Robert Kocharian and Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian. They will leave for Stepanakert on Tuesday.
The Russian co-chair Yuri Merzlyakov said he could not unveil the content of the talks–and stated–"At this stage the consultations between co-chairs and Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers that have begun in Prague are continuing."This time we wanted also to compare our perception of the results of Prague consultations with the perception of the sides," Merzlyakov added.