Russia, perhaps more than anyone else, is interested in the establishment of a stable, just peace between the two friendly states in the region, Armenia and Azerbaijan, and in the reliable elimination of any recurrence of past conflicts. Sergey Lavrov said this at a press conference with the Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan, noting that the tripartite meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Russia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan is not removed from the agenda. Russia is ready to accept it.

Lavrov also announced that a new meeting is being agreed upon at the ministerial level in the format of “3+3” (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Russia, Iran, Georgia) dedicated to the issues of ensuring peace and stability in the South Caucasus.

Earlier, Denis Gonchar, director of the fourth department of the CIS countries of the Russian Foreign Ministry, announced that the second meeting of the regional cooperation platform in the “3+3” format may take place in the coming months, noting that “judging by the mood of the countries participating in the format, an invitation to the meeting may also be sent to Georgia.”

It should be noted that the first session of the “3+3” consultative regional platform was held on December 10, 2021, in Moscow with the participation of the Deputy Foreign Ministers of Russia, Armenia, Turkey, and Azerbaijan, as well as the Director General of the Iranian Foreign Ministry. The Russian Foreign Ministry reported that the representatives of Georgia, who were also invited, refrained from participating in the meeting.