Armenia, Azerbaijan hold talks on peace agreement
The Armenian and Azerbaijani Foreign Ministers held talks over the conditions of a peace treaty in Geneva, Switzerland on Sunday.
The latest Azerbaijani aggression on the Armenian border that was resulted with more than 250 casualties in total from both sides, was among the issues discussed in the meeting between Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and his Azerbaijani counterpart Ceyhun Bayramov, according to both countries’ statements following the talks.
Azerbaijani side proposed holding the next meeting of the bilateral commission on delimitation this month, instead of November as previously agreed.
Last month, the Azerbaijan – Armenia border has seen the most violent confrontation since the Second Nagorno-Karabakh war, after Azerbaijani side violated the ceasefire agreement reached between the sides in November 2020.
Armenia accused Azerbaijan for shelling Armenian positions, using large-caliber weapons, artillery, missile systems, and UAVs and occupying ten square kilometers of Armenian sovereign territory. Azerbaijan blamed Armenian armed forces of a series of “large-scale provocations” and said it has taken “retaliatory” measures.
The two Caucasian countries embroiled in six weeks of war in autumn 2020 over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. The conflict ended with a truce agreement brokered by Russia in November 2020.
Ensuring the rights and security guarantees of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh in a peace treaty was among the highlighted demands of the Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan during the meeting, Mirzoyan’s office said in a written statement.
Mirzoyan reiterated the Armenian side’s call on the withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia and the immediate release of all Armenian prisoners of war, according to the Armenian Foreign Ministry statement.
Highlighting the importance of introducing an international mechanisms for border situation control, Armenian Foreign Ministry said that “the war crimes committed by the Azerbaijani armed forces should receive a clear assessment by international bodies, and the criminals should be brought to justice.”
“The sides positively assessed the mutual understanding on unblocking of the regional transport routes under the sovereignty and jurisdiction of the countries,” the statement said.
FMs @AraratMirzoyan & @bayramov_jeyhun exchanged views on peace treaty btwn #Armenia & #Azerbaijan, ensuring rights & sec guarantees for Armenians of #NagornoKarabakh, including through establishment of discussion mechanism between #Stepanakert & #Baku. https://t.co/v6ZuU8Fb1Y
— MFA of Armenia???????? (@MFAofArmenia) October 3, 2022
According to Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry statement, Bayramov emphasized the “The importance of full withdrawal of the Armenian armed units from the territories of Azerbaijan, the opening of transport and communication lines within the short period based on the preliminary agreements reached in the trilateral commission under the leadership of the deputy prime ministers, the need to make progress in the field of delimitation, in accordance with the trilateral statements signed by the leaders of Azerbaijan, Armenia and Russian Federation, as well as the agreements reached between the leaders”.
Bayramov accused the Armenian side for “continuing” to place landmines on the territory of Azerbaijan.
Azərbaycan və Ermənistan xarici işlər nazirləri arasında Cenevrədə keçirilmiş ikitərəfli görüşə dair bəyanat
— MFA Azerbaijan ???????? (@AzerbaijanMFA) October 3, 2022
➡️https://t.co/89scN2Jy3Z
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Statement on the bilateral meeting of Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan and Armenia held in Geneva
➡️https://t.co/SjgXQkVG23 pic.twitter.com/Eht9r72hmK