After a meeting in Brussels with the Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and the Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Sunday 14 May, the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, pleaded for a positive dynamic to be maintained.
“Following the recent positive talks held in the United States on the peace treaty, the momentum should be maintained to take decisive steps towards the signing of a comprehensive peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan”, he said in a statement to the media.
Mr Michel also stressed the need to “refrain from hostile rhetoric, engage in good faith and show leadership to reach mutually-acceptable solutions”.
In exchanges described as “frank, open and result-oriented” by Mr Michel, “the leaders shared a common willingness for a South Caucasus at peace”.
The leaders agreed to resume bilateral meetings on border issues, Mr Michel announced, adding that they had confirmed their unequivocal commitment to the 1991 Almaty Declaration and to the respective territorial integrity of Armenia (29,800 km²) and Azerbaijan (89,600 km²). “The ultimate delimitation of the border will be agreed through negotiations”, he said.
On connectivity, the parties have made “clear progress” in their discussions to unblock transport and economic links in the region, according to Mr Michel. He felt that positions were now very close, especially on the reopening of rail links to and through Nakhchivan. The teams were tasked with finalising an agreement in principle on how to open the rail links and the necessary construction work and on a concrete timetable. They also agreed to use the World Customs Organization to support this work.
In addition, it was established that more detainees would be released in the coming weeks. The President of the European Council stressed the need to preserve the mutual agreement that soldiers who simply got lost and crossed over will continue to be released in a fast-track procedure. The importance of intensifying work on the fate of missing persons and on demining was also discussed.
On the issue of the rights and security of Armenians living in the former autonomous region of Nagorno-Karabakh, Mr Michel encouraged Azerbaijan to engage in the development of a positive programme to ensure the rights and security of this population, in close cooperation with the international community. He stressed the need for a transparent and constructive dialogue between Baku and this population.
The leaders will meet in Chișinău on 1 June with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, followed by a trilateral meeting in July, and finally, again as a group of five in October in Granada, Spain. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)