Azerbaijani and Armenian leaders will resume peace talks in Brussels this weekend, officials say, as Western allies step up efforts to mediate between conflict-torn neighbors following a recent upsurge in fighting around their disputed border.
European Council President Charles Michel will host a meeting between Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Sunday, three officials familiar with the preparations told the Financial Times.
It will be the first time the two leaders have met in person since talks in Munich in February and after the two countries’ foreign ministers held in-depth talks in Washington last week. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the talks “have made tangible progress towards a lasting peace agreement” and that he believes “a [is] within sight, within reach.
Hundreds of soldiers have been killed in sporadic clashes since a full-scale war in 2020 ended in an unstable ceasefire. Diplomatic efforts EU-led and the United States on one side, and Russia on the other, have since sought to broker a long-standing peace deal without success.
The two former Soviet republics fought for control of the Nagorno-Karabakh territory since the collapse of the USSR. The Armenian-majority region was previously controlled by Armenia before being largely captured by Azerbaijan in 2020.
The Brussels meeting is an “important sign of progress,” said one of the three officials on condition of anonymity because it is not yet public, adding that EU and US efforts are “ mutually reinforcing” and “complementary two-track processes”.
The three leaders are also scheduled to hold another meeting on June 1 with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron on the sidelines of the European Political Community summit in Moldova, two of the officials said.
Spokespersons for Michel and Aliyev declined to comment. A Pashinyan spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.
“Azerbaijan feels quite comfortable with the Charles Michel mission because [the] The EU has no hidden agenda,” said Hikmet Hajiyev, Aliyev’s foreign policy adviser. He added that the EU process had developed “key concepts” for the negotiations and their structure.
The talks will likely focus on Azerbaijan’s recent decision to install a checkpoint on the Lachin corridor, Armenia’s only road access to Nagorno-Karabakh. They will also include discussions on border demarcation, prisoner swaps and efforts to remove the thousands of mines that litter the enclave.
Yerevan says Baku is using the checkpoint to strangle essential supplies of food and medicine to Nagorno-Karabakh, while Baku says it is necessary to prevent arms smuggling into the territory.
“Regulating one’s own territory is normal for every country,” Hajiyev said. “The road is open, but the road is closed for illicit traffic.”
The EU-led effort is also a test of its influence in its wider neighborhood and a challenge to Moscow’s historic influence. Russia has about 2,000 soldiers stationed in Nagorno-Karabakh as blue helmets after negotiating the 2020 ceasefire.
Hajiyev said Baku was “flexible” about meeting in Moscow, Washington or Brussels, noting the process should be more “inclusive” in order to produce results.
“Russia can effectively contribute to the peacebuilding process in the region,” Hajiyev said. “But it is also true that Russia is very concerned about the war in Ukraine.”
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