Speaking in parliament, Arayik Harutiunian did not provide details from last week’s meeting between the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan, but stated that all such meetings are positive in terms of dialogue.
“Undoubtedly, we aim to see all these processes that have been initiated and the signing of a peace agreement become a reality in the near future. I think such contacts are useful,” Harutiunian added.
Earlier, Pashinian advocated for signing a peace treaty with Baku based on the points that both sides have already agreed upon, indicating that this constitutes about 80 percent of the draft. He noted that the sides could work on the remaining issues later. However, Baku rejected this initiative.
The Armenian opposition interpreted the latest statement from the senior representative of the Pashinian administration as yet another “concession” to Azerbaijan.
Anna Grigorian, a member of the opposition Hayastan faction in parliament, stated on Wednesday that the three points on which Yerevan and Baku continue to disagree “supposedly contain such great risks for our country that they prevent a general agreement from being reached.”
“But this is once again a concession from this government,” Grigorian said. “A peace agreement is only good when it is based on compromises. Agreements based solely on concessions cannot be effective,” she added.
Armenia and Azerbaijan engaged in the current peace process following a deadly war in 2020 over Nagorno-Karabakh that saw Baku regaining control of most of the breakaway region. Azerbaijan completed its takeover of the region in 2023 when more than 100,000 ethnic Armenians fled hostilities and resettled in Armenia.
Optimism regarding the possibility of Armenia and Azerbaijan signing a peace agreement in the near future grew after Pashinian and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev met in Kazan on the sidelines of the BRICS summit hosted by Russia earlier this month.
Few details of the October 24 meeting were officially reported, but an ally of Pashinian told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service late last week that Yerevan was satisfied with the talks where some “tangible results” may have been achieved.
RFE/RL’s Armenian Service’s source also indicated that Pashinian and Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan told their political allies on October 25 that some progress was also made in Kazan on the points of the draft treaty over which the sides continue to have differences.
No details have been disclosed yet, but pro-government lawmaker Hovik Aghazarian confirmed that issues related to unblocking, and more specifically to the restoration of cargo transportation, were also addressed at the Kazan talks.
The issue of opening the railway was being actively discussed by the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan in 2021-22 during negotiations mediated by Charles Michel, president of the European Council. An agreement was even announced at that time, stating that border and customs control should operate on the principle of reciprocity.
The Armenian government made preliminary calculations estimating that the construction of the railway would cost $200 million. However, the Armenian side expected agreements to be documented before construction began, which did not happen.
During this period, Baku continued to promote the establishment of the so-called Zangezur Corridor, a route to connect mainland Azerbaijan with its western exclave of Nakhichevan. Advocating the unblocking of all transport routes in the region, Yerevan, meanwhile, has insisted that any extraterritorial logic behind the road through its southern Syunik province would be a red line for it. It has also rejected any role for Russia in controlling the road.
RFE/RL’s Armenian Service has learned from its source that during their talks in Kazan, the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan reached no specific agreement on the possible conclusion of a peace treaty.
The United States and other international partners of Armenia and Azerbaijan have repeatedly expressed their support for a peace treaty between the two South Caucasus nations, encouraging them to finalize it already this year.