BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 8. Russia is consistently taking steps towards comprehensive normalization of Armenian-Azerbaijani relations, Secretary of the Russian Security Council Nikolai Patrushev said at a meeting in Moscow with his CIS colleagues, TurkicWorld reports.

"Russia is interested in stabilizing the situation in the South Caucasus, creating conditions for the development of the region and strengthening mutual trust and cooperation," he said.

According to him, for this purpose Russia is consistently taking steps for comprehensive normalization of Armenian-Azerbaijani relations in order to conclude a peace treaty between the two countries, delimitation of borders, opening of transport communications.

"Practice shows that this is possible only under the condition of non-interference of extra-regional forces. The actions of Western countries provoke the degradation of the situation in the region and contribute to the preservation of contradictions in the region," Patrushev added.