Armenia and Azerbaijan to hold peace talks in Berlin

Armenia and Azerbaijan’s foreign ministers are set to hold peace talks in Berlin on Feb. 28-29 to address ongoing conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh territory

As both sides confirmed on Monday, the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan are scheduled to have peace talks in Berlin, which is a key step toward ending the ongoing conflict in the Caucasus area. The goal of these discussions, which are scheduled for Feb. 28–29, is to continue addressing the long-standing conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh territory, which has been the main source of tension between the two nations.

Until Azerbaijan swiftly recaptured the territory in September, Nagorno-Karabakh, which Azerbaijan claims to be its territory, was ruled by Armenia for many decades. The details of the scheduled meeting were disclosed on social media by Ani Badalyan, a spokesman for the Armenian foreign ministry. She said that the meeting was planned in accordance with the agreements reached at the Munich trilateral meetings, with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of Armenia.

In addition to confirming his presence in the Berlin discussions, Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov expressed his hope for a fruitful discussion with his Armenian colleague, Ararat Mirzoyan. After Azerbaijan reclaimed Karabakh and over 100,000 ethnic Armenians were forced to flee to Armenia, the peace negotiations are taking place under a very tense moment.

Concerns over possible Azerbaijani plans to seize Armenian territory and create a corridor to its Nakhichevan enclave have been aroused in Yerevan by the conflict’s return. International mediation attempts have not yielded a conclusive breakthrough, in contrast to Pashinyan and Aliyev’s earlier confidence about striking a peace accord by the end of last year.

Both countries have a critical chance to work through their disagreements and find a long-term settlement at the Berlin peace negotiations. The world is keeping a careful eye on the situation in the hopes that a favorable conclusion would bring forth a new age of harmony and collaboration in the Caucasus. 

Source: AFP