The foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan, Ararat Mirzoyan and Jeyhun Bayramov, pledged to continue talks toward a peace treaty during a meeting mediated by Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday in Washington.
Blinken announced earlier in the day that he would host talks between the two top diplomats on the margins of the NATO summit currently underway in Washington to mark the group’s 75th anniversary.
“The parties noted the progress Armenia and Azerbaijan have achieved towards the conclusion of a historic agreement on peace and establishment of interstate relations, and agreed to continue the work,” a statement from the Armenian foreign ministry said, without further elaborations.
Azerbaijan’s foreign ministry issued a similarly-worded statement after the meeting.
Until Tuesday, the Armenian foreign ministry insisted that a meeting between Mirzoyan and Bayramov was not scheduled.
“Over the last year, year and a half, Armenia and Azerbaijan have done very important work toward negotiating and concluding a peace agreement – one that is durable, one that is dignified, and one that would open extraordinary possibilities for both countries, the region that they share, and for their relationship with the United States,” Blinken told reporters before his meeting, adding the U.S., along with the European Union, has sought to be helpful and supportive throughout the negotiation process between Yerevan and Baku.
Today is an opportunity to take stock in the progress that’s been made, what remains. But based on all of the engagements that we’ve had, including in recent weeks, I believe both countries are very close to being able to reach a final agreement, one that the United States would strongly, strongly support,” Blinken said before the talks with Mirzoyan and Bayramov.
The Armenian foreign ministry reported that Blinken and Mirzoyan spoke briefly Tuesday night during the official opening reception of the NATO Summit.
“Views were exchanged with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on bilateral agenda and regional topics,” said the foreign ministry statement.
Before traveling to Washington, Bayramov had warned Yerevan to be prudent and take advantages of the “new opportunities that have emerged in the region for establishing new realities, peace, stability, and cooperation.”
“It is time for the Armenian side to choose regional cooperation over territorial claims,” Bayramov said.
Azerbaijan’s leaders, headed by President Ilham Aliyev, have insisted that Armenia change its constitution as a precondition for signing a peace deal.
Bayramov, as recently as Monday, insisted on the change to Armenia’s constitution before the signing of the peace treaty.
”The Armenian constitution still includes territorial claims against Azerbaijan, which must be addressed for full peace to be achieved,” he said, saying eliminating threats to his country’s sovereignty is “the main priority.”
Yerevan has scoffed at Baku’s demands, saying the Armenian Constitution and any amendments to the document are internal matters for Armenia.
The foreign ministry said last week that Azerbaijan was creating artificial obstacles to the peace process, pledging Yerevan’s readiness to sign a peace treaty “within a month.”
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