TEHRAN, May 18 (MNA) – Iranian Ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali met and held talks with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border situation.

During the meeting which was held on Tuesday in Moscow, the two side discussed the relevant issues of the regional agenda, including the situation around the Nagorno Karabakh conflict and the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.

Armenian media recently reported, citing official Armenian sources, that the forces of the Republic of Azerbaijan had advanced up to 3.5 km into the territory of Armenia in one of the border areas.

On the other hand, news sources of the Republic of Azerbaijan had previously reported that during the First Karabakh War, Armenian forces illegally took control of some border areas of the Republic of Azerbaijan in addition to Nagorno-Karabakh.

The last round of tensions between the Republic of Azerbaijan and Armenia began on September 27 over the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, with the two sides accusing each other of invading their territories. The Republic of Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement three times, but each time these agreements were violated and the two sides accused each other of violating them. The fourth ceasefire agreement was signed with the official mediation of Russia.

Following the tripartite agreement between Russia, the Republic of Azerbaijan and Armenia on the ceasefire, Russian troops were deployed to monitor the ceasefire and establish a buffer zone between the forces involved in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

The Islamic Republic of Iran has repeatedly called for the settlement of disputes between Armenia and the Republic of Azerbaijan through diplomatic channels.

In reaction to the issues that have arisen along the borders between Armenia and the Azerbaijan Republic, Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesman called on both sides to show restraint and avoid fuelling the disagreements.

Khatibzadeh also expressed Iran's preparedness to contribute to the peaceful settlement of the two countries' differences including the recent dispute.

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