BRUSSELS: Azerbaijan and Armenia engaged in a fresh round of peace talks mediated by the European Union (EU) on Saturday. The discussions took place in Brussels between Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, with European Council President Charles Michel serving as the mediator. The talks aimed to address the long-standing conflict over the control of the Armenian-populated Nagorno-Karabakh region.
In a statement, Azerbaijan’s foreign ministry confirmed the meeting and expressed hopes for a resolution to the decades-long dispute. However, tensions have resurfaced as Azerbaijan temporarily closed the Lachin corridor, the sole land link between Karabakh and Armenia. Azerbaijan’s defense ministry also accused Armenian separatist forces in Karabakh of using radio interference against GPS navigation systems of passenger aircraft flying through Azerbaijan’s airspace. The defense ministry stated that this interference posed a serious threat to aviation safety.
Karabakh’s rebel authorities promptly denied the claims, dismissing them as an “absolute lie.” Meanwhile, on Friday, thousands of people rallied in Karabakh, demanding the reopening of the Lachin corridor. The separatist forces emphasized the need for free movement through the road to avoid a potential humanitarian crisis.
Conflict Over Karabakh Between Azerbaijan and Armenia
The conflict over Karabakh has spanned several decades, with Armenia and Azerbaijan engaging in two wars over the disputed territory primarily populated by Armenians. In autumn 2020, a ceasefire agreement sponsored by Russia put an end to six weeks of intense fighting. The agreement resulted in Armenia ceding territories it had controlled for decades, and Russian peacekeepers were deployed to ensure free passage through the five-kilometer-wide Lachin Corridor.
Both Baku and Yerevan have been working towards negotiating a comprehensive peace agreement with the assistance of the EU and the United States. However, reaching a final agreement remains challenging. Previous rounds of Western-mediated talks have seen some progress in drafting a peace agreement text, but its actual signing remains distant.
Yerevan has expressed willingness to recognize Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan but has called for international mechanisms to safeguard the rights and security of the region’s ethnic Armenian population. On the other hand, Baku insists that such guarantees should be provided at the national level, rejecting the involvement of international formats.
The conflict in Karabakh began when ethnic Armenian separatists declared independence from Azerbaijan after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. The ensuing conflict claimed thousands of lives and has been a longstanding source of tension in the region.
