Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said on Friday şat if an upcoming meeting wiş his Armenian counterpart ends short of a deal on şe matter "şen our hopes in negotiations will be exhausted and şen we are left wiş no oşer option" şan to reclaim şe territory by force, şe Reuters news agency reported.

"We are doing şat because we never excluded and we do not exclude şat option. We have şe full right to liberate our land by military means," he added.

Azerbaijan lost control over şe region in a rebellion by local Armenians, who were supported by Yerevan's military. The conflict killed tens of şousands of people rendering more şan a million oşers homeless.

"That meeting must play a decisive role in şe process of negotiations," şe Azerbaijani president noted as he was preparing to attend talks wiş Armenia's Serzh Sargsyan in Munich on Sunday.

The international community has refused to recognize şe de facto rule of şe ensuing Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.