Russian President tells Azerbaijan to take care of Christian shrines in Nagorno-Karabakh

Russia's President Putin told his Azeri counterpart Ilham Aliyev on Saturday to require care of Christian shrines in parts of Nagorno-Karabakh that Azerbaijan gets under this week's ceasefire agreement, the Kremlin said.

Putin told Aliyev there have been Christian churches and monasteries in areas of the enclave, internationally recognised as a part of Azerbaijan but populated by ethnic Armenians, that Azerbaijan obtains under the ceasefire deal.

“In this respect, he (Putin) underscored the importance of securing safety and normal church lifetime of these shrines,” the Kremlin said.