Azerbaijan and Armenia have confirmed that bilateral talks represent the “most efficient” format in their ongoing normalisation process, as Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan held talks in the capital of the United Arab Emirates.
A press release by Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday, following the talks in Abu Dhabi, stated that the discussions addressed various aspects of the normalisation agenda between the two Southern Caucasus neighbours.
“It was confirmed that bilateral negotiations represent the most efficient format to address all issues concerning the normalisation process, and on this basis, it was agreed to continue such result-oriented dialogue,” the statement said.
It further stated that Aliyev and Pashinyan took note of the progress made in the ongoing border delimitation process, instructing their delegations to continue with practical work on this matter.
It also said that both sides agreed to continue bilateral negotiations and confidence-building measures, adding that Aliyev and Pashinyan thanked UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan for his warm hospitality and organising the meeting.
An identical statement was also released by the Armenian Foreign Ministry.
Relations between the two former Soviet republics have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Karabakh – a territory internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan – and seven adjacent regions.
Most of the territory was liberated by Azerbaijan during a 44-day war in the fall of 2020, which ended after a Russian-brokered peace agreement that opened the door to normalisation and demarcation talks.
In September 2023, Azerbaijan established full sovereignty in Karabakh after separatist forces in the region surrendered.
On March 13, Baku and Yerevan declared that they had reached a consensus on all 17 articles of a peace deal, though the deal has yet to be signed.
“We, of course, welcome the fact of such direct dialogue, and we have repeatedly said at various levels that we would welcome the earliest possible signing of a peace treaty,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told journalists at a press briefing in Moscow.
Peskov said a peace agreement between the two neighbours will be an important factor that will add “predictability, stability and peace to the region,” and that Moscow supports the ongoing process.