Russia open to return of occupied lands in Karabakh to Azerbaijan: Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin says Moscow is open to the return of the occupied lands of the south Caucasus region of Nagorna-Karabakh to Baku, in an effort to put an end to weeks of heavy fighting between Azerbaijan and Armenia. The Russian leader, who has so far brokered two ceasefire deals between the two Caucasus nations, said on Thursday that his government “is absolutely open with regard to the possibility of handing over,” the occupied regions to Azerbaijan. During more than a month of fighting in and around Karabakh, Azerbaijani forces have managed to take control of a large proportion of the mainly flat and sparsely populated territory, south of Nagorno-Karabakh. Putin said on...