Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry welcomes the statements of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov regarding recognition by Armenia illegal regime established in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry's Spokesman Hikmet Hajiyev told local media on May 4.

Azerbaijan has always declared its readiness for the substantive negotiations that will lead to the liberation of Azerbaijani territories, he added.

Azerbaijan civilian population, compactly living along the contact line of troops suffer from violations of the ceasefire, Hikmet Hajiyev said.

There are no civilians in the occupied territories controlled by Armenia. "Preventing violations of the ceasefire and creating a mechanism for investigating incidents should be an integral part of the process of withdrawal of Armenian armed forces from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan", Hikmet Hajiyev added.