Armenia, Azerbaijan agree to work on demarcation of borders

The Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan and the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev agreed today, in a rare meeting in Russia, to reduce tensions and resolve their differences after the 2020 war.

In talks between the two leaders in Sochi under the auspices of Russian President Vladimir Putin, they mainly agreed to work to demarcate their common border and restore road connections.

“We have agreed on some issues that, in my opinion, are crucial,” Putin told a joint news conference, calling the talks “constructive”. “The first issue is the creation, by the end of the year, of a mechanism for the demarcation and demarcation of the borders between the two states,” he added.

Following the ceasefire, in November 2020, there have been several violent incidents on the border between the two countries. Two weeks ago, six Armenian and seven Azeri soldiers were killed in an exchange of fire. Yerevan accuses neighboring country of raids on its territory.

According to Putin, Armenia and Azerbaijan have also agreed to reopen “transport corridors” between them, both the railway and the roads.

The three countries’ announcement makes no reference to the return of prisoners of war.

Representatives of the three countries will meet again next week in Moscow to finalize the decision.

Earlier, the Russian president called on his counterparts to “restore the ties” that have bound them together for centuries and “develop them.” He also encouraged Aliyev and Pasinian to establish direct contact with each other. “The more contacts there are, the better,” he said.

Aliyev said the talks would help improve security in the Caucasus, while Pasinian said the meeting “clarified positions” and showed that Yerevan and Baku “have no differences” on certain issues.

Source: ΑΠΕ-ΜΠΕ