Armenian and Azerbaijani officials announced today that they have reached an agreement on a peace deal to resolve almost four decades of conflict between their countries in the South Caucasus region. This unexpected breakthrough comes after years of intermittent and strained peace efforts.
The two former Soviet nations have been engaged in multiple conflicts since the late 1980s when Nagorno-Karabakh, a region in Azerbaijan predominantly inhabited by ethnic Armenians at the time, seceded with Armenia's support.
Armenia's Foreign Ministry confirmed the finalization of a draft peace agreement with Azerbaijan, stating, "The peace agreement is prepared for signature. Armenia is ready to initiate discussions with Azerbaijan regarding the signing date and location."
Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry also expressed satisfaction, announcing, "Negotiations on the draft Agreement on Peace and the Establishment of Interstate Relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia have been successfully completed."
However, the signing timeline remains uncertain, as Azerbaijan conditions its approval on a modification to Armenia's constitution, which it alleges implies territorial claims. Armenia refutes these allegations, although Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has advocated for revising the country's constitution. No specific date has been set for the signing.
Prime Minister Pashinyan, as reported by Russia's TASS news agency, highlighted that the agreement would prevent the deployment of foreign personnel along the Armenia-Azerbaijan border, possibly affecting entities like the European Union civilian monitoring mission criticized by Baku and Russian border guards patrolling parts of Armenia's frontiers.
The conflicts in the late 1980s led to mass expulsions of hundreds of thousands of Muslim Azeris from Armenia and Christian Armenians from Azerbaijan. Peace negotiations gained momentum after Azerbaijan regained control of Nagorno-Karabakh in September 2023, prompting most of the region's 100,000 Armenians to seek refuge in Armenia.
While both parties expressed a desire to sign a treaty to end the protracted conflict, progress has been sluggish, and bilateral relations remain tense. The 621-mile shared border remains heavily militarized and sealed off.
Earlier in January, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev accused Armenia of posing a "fascist" threat that needed to be eliminated, a statement perceived by Armenia's leadership as a potential rationale for renewed hostilities.