The Armenian Security Council confirmed, on Sunday 24 September, that the Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pachinian, and the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliev, would meet on 5 October in Granada.
This meeting had been announced in July by the President of the European Council, Charles Michel (see EUROPE 13224/5), but the situation in Karabakh could have had an impact on it being held. Nearly 3,000 people are thought to have left Karabakh to enter Armenia since the Azerbaijani military intervention, although Mr Aliyev explained, on Monday 25 September, that “the inhabitants of Nagorno-Karabakh, regardless of their ethnicity, (were) citizens of Azerbaijan” and that their rights would be guaranteed by the Azerbaijani state.
The initial aim of the Granada meeting was to discuss a peace treaty between Yerevan and Baku.
Charles Michel’s spokesperson described the meeting as “possible”. The spokesperson confirmed that Mr Michel’s chief diplomatic adviser, Simon Mordue, would chair a meeting on Tuesday 26 September with the national security advisers of Armenia, Azerbaijan, France and Germany and the EU Special Representative for the region. “The aim is to take stock of the current situation and prepare for a possible leaders’ meeting in Granada”, the spokesperson said.
If it goes ahead, the meeting in Granada is expected to be attended by the French President, Emmanuel Macron, and the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)