Azerbaijan and Armenia finalize peace treaty after negotiations

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov announced that Azerbaijan and Armenia have reached a final agreement on a peace treaty, agreeing on all articles, and have completed the negotiation process.

According to the news agency APA, the final agreed-upon articles include that the parties will not make mutual claims in the international arena and will not have foreign observers at the border.

The Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs also confirmed the completion of the negotiations. In an official statement, the Ministry said, “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia confirms that the draft ‘Agreement on the Establishment of Peace and Interstate Relations Between the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Azerbaijan’ has been agreed upon. Therefore, the document is ready for signing.”

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated that the parties are ready to discuss the details regarding the date and place of the signing.

“We have our ideas, and so does Baku. We will try to bring them closer during the negotiations,” Pashinyan said.

According to Pashinyan’s statement, the agreements reached are a compromise that considers the interests of both parties.

The Prime Minister also emphasized that there are no secret clauses in the treaty text, stating, “The public is familiar with its main provisions, as they have been discussed for four years.”

The Prime Minister noted that since an agreement has been reached, Azerbaijan finds it beneficial for itself, and Armenia finds it acceptable for itself.

“This is what should be in any peace agreement,” he added.

Pashinyan stated that there were no negotiations with Baku regarding amendments to the Armenian Constitution.

However, Azerbaijan insists on changes to Armenia’s fundamental law, as it refers to the 1990 Declaration of Independence, which defines Nagorno-Karabakh as part of the country. Baku considers this a territorial claim.

Pashinyan had previously mentioned the need for constitutional reform, including the possibility of a referendum for a new fundamental law.

At the end of February, Pashinyan reported that the parties had agreed on 15 of the 17 articles of the agreement.

At that time, the main disagreements were related to the deployment of foreign troops along the border and cases pending in international courts.