Armenia, Azerbaijan agree to take steps towards normalisation

YEREVAN – Arch-foes Armenia and Azerbaijan have said they will exchange prisoners of war and work towards normalising relations, a breakthrough that has been hailed internationally.

The Caucasus neighbours have long fought over the Nagorno-Karabakh region, which

Azerbaijan reclaimed after a lightning offensive against Armenian separatists

in September.

Peace talks – mediated separately by the European Union, the United States and Russia – had seen little progress, but both countries still say a peace agreement could be signed by the end of 2023.

The two sides agreed in a joint statement late on Dec 8 to seize “a historical chance to achieve a long-awaited peace in the region”.

“The two countries reconfirm their intention to normalise relations and to reach the peace treaty,” the statement said.

Baku will free 32 Armenian prisoners of war, while Yerevan will release two Azerbaijani servicemen, according to the statement.

They also agreed to continue discussions on “more confidence-building measures, effective in the near future”.

COP29 hopes

As a sign of good faith, Armenia said it was withdrawing its bid to host United Nations-led climate talks in 2024,

paving the way for Azerbaijan’s candidacy.

The annual negotiations on fighting climate change, known as COPs, rotate among regions and were due to be hosted by an Eastern European country in 2024 after 2023’s COP28 in Dubai.

“Armenia and the Republic of Azerbaijan do hope that the other countries within the Eastern European Group will also support Azerbaijan’s bid to host,” the statement read.

A grouping of Eastern European nations must unanimously choose the COP29 host, with Russia reportedly opposing a European Union member holding the event.

As non-EU members, Armenia and Azerbaijan were both seen as candidates.

‘Key step’

EU Council president Charles Michel praised the statement, calling it a “key step” and a “major breakthrough in Armenia-Azerbaijan relations.”

US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller also hailed “an important confidence-building measure as the sides work to finalise a peace agreement and normalise relations”.

Armenia’s Foreign Ministry said Yerevan had “responded positively” to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s offer to organise a meeting of the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers in Washington.

The Russian and Turkish foreign ministries both said they welcomed the breakthrough, with Baku’s ally Ankara expressing hope that a peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia will be signed “as soon as possible”.

Stalled talks

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev have met several times for normalisation talks mediated by Mr Michel.

But the process stalled over the last two months as two negotiation rounds failed to take place.

Azerbaijan refused to participate in talks with Armenia that were planned in the United States on Nov 20, over what it said was Washington’s “biased” position.

In October, Mr Aliyev declined to attend negotiations with Mr Pashinyan in Spain, that time accusing France of bias.

French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz had been scheduled to join Mr Michel as mediators at those talks.

There has been no visible progress so far in EU efforts to organise a fresh round of negotiations.

Russia, the traditional regional power broker, has seen its influence wane in the Caucasus.

Mr Aliyev sent troops to Karabakh on Sept 19, and after just one day of fighting, Armenian separatist forces that had controlled the disputed region for three decades laid down arms and agreed to reintegrate with Baku.

Almost the entire Armenian population of the mountainous enclave – more than 100,000 people – fled Karabakh for Armenia, sparking a refugee crisis.

Azerbaijan’s victory marked the end of the territorial dispute, which led to wars in the 1990s and 2020 that claimed tens of thousands of lives from both sides. AFP