Putin, Aliyev confirm efforts on peace in South Caucasus

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
3 Sep 20:37
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The two presidents discussed the August 31 meeting with the Armenian Prime Minister and the President of the EU Council, including other subjects of mutual concern and interest.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev in a previous meeting

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin via phone call about his August 31 meeting in Brussels with the Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, and the President of the European Council, Charles Michel.

In a statement published today, the Kremlin said that the two presidents confirmed their intention to continue implementing the basic tripartite agreements between the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed on November 9, 2020, January 11, and November 26, 2021.

"The two presidents discussed the situation in the South Caucasus," the statement added, and stressed "the importance of coordinated efforts to ensure stability and security on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border and to establish economic ties and transport links in the region."

The Kremlin stated that the two leaders discussed bilateral issues between the two countries, including trade, economy, energy, and humanitarian fields.

The situation in the South Caucasus is of interest to Presidents Aliyev and Putin, who earlier, along with Pashinyan, discussed efforts to improve relations between the two neighboring countries in the South Caucasus.

Last February, Putin and Aliyev signed a broad cooperation agreement covering working together to restore all commercial and transportation linkages in the area, including passenger and freight flow between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

Earlier this month, it was reported that new tensions erupted over Nagorno-Karabakh as three soldiers were killed and Azerbaijan said it had taken control of several strategic heights in the disputed region.

Russia sent 2,000 peacekeepers to monitor the truce, but tensions remain despite a ceasefire deal. This new wave of violence triggered international pleas for an urgent de-escalation.

The conflict initially began with both parties accusing each other of starting an overnight shootout at their shared border.

Pashinyan stated in mid-April that his administration planned to sign a peace treaty with Azerbaijan shortly, adding that the aim of the discussions for Yerevan would no longer be to agree on the future status of Nagorno-Karabakh within Azerbaijan.

The accord was viewed as a national shame in Armenia, sparking weeks of anti-government rallies and prompting Pashinyan to seek emergency parliamentary elections, which his Civil Contract party won in September.

Opposition parties have accused Pashinyan of preparing to hand up sections of Karabakh that are still under Armenian control to Baku after he told parliamentarians last month that the "international community calls on Armenia to scale down demands on Karabakh."

Michel held a trilateral meeting in May with Pashinyan and Aliyev in Brussels. During the meeting, the leaders agreed to establish the commission on delimitation and security of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.

On May 24, the first meeting of Armenian Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan and his Azerbaijani counterpart, Shahin Mustafayev, took place at the Armenian-Azerbaijani interstate border in the format of a joint commission on border delimitation and security.

On July 16, both foreign ministers met for the first time since the war erupted. The Armenian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Ararat Mirzoyan and his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov "discussed a wide range of issues related to normalizing relations between the two countries."