YEREVAN, September 8 (RIA Novosti) - Robert Bradtke, former Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy to Croatia, has been appointed the American co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group.

The Minsk Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe mediates the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorny Karabakh. Its co-chairs are the United States, Russia and France.

In August, however, it was reported that U.S. diplomat Matthew Bryza, who co-chaired the Minsk Group at the time, could be replaced by Tina S. Kaidanow, former U.S. ambassador to Kosovo.

Nagorny Karabakh, a region in Azerbaijan with a largely Armenian population, has been a source of conflict between the former Soviet republics since the late 1980s. The province has its own government and is de facto independent.

According to the U.S. State Department, Bradtke completed his three-year assignment in Zagreb in July and has a huge experience of diplomatic work, as well as possessing extensive knowledge of European security policy.

The war between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the mountainous enclave in 1988-1994 left an estimated 35,000 people dead. Sporadic violence on the border has continued ever since.