By Burc Eruygur
ISTANBUL (AA) - Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on Monday expressed Baku’s appreciation for the EU’s mediation in peace negotiations between his country and neighboring Armenia.
A statement by the Azerbaijani presidency said that Aliyev held talks with visiting EU Council President Charles Michel in the country's capital, during which he underlined the bloc’s mediation role amid ongoing negotiations between Baku and Yerevan.
The statement said Aliyev emphasized that it was during Michel’s mediation that the structure of the negotiations and the agenda of important directions between Azerbaijan and Armenia were formed.
It further said Michel expressed hope that important decisions regarding climate change will be made at the 29th UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) currently held in the Azerbaijani capital.
Indicating that Michel conveyed climate change as one of the key topics in the EU’s agenda, the statement went on to say that the two leaders also discussed the prospects for the development of relations between the bloc and Azerbaijan.
For his part, Michel said on X that he congratulated Aliyev on hosting COP29 and said that the EU is committed to delivering on financial solidarity and its climate goals.
Underlining that he and Aliyev touched upon all aspects of bilateral relations during the talks, Michel said that they also discussed the situation regarding the ongoing peace talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
“The EU remains ready to support all efforts for a stable, peaceful and prosperous Caucasus,” he added.
Since early Monday, Aliyev has held talks with multiple leaders who arrived in Baku to attend the COP29, including his Finnish, Iraqi, Mongolian, Slovakian, and Serbian counterparts, as well as Belgium and Georgia’s premiers.
Relations between Baku and Yerevan have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Karabakh, a territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, and seven adjacent regions.
Most of the territory was liberated by Azerbaijan during the war in the fall of 2020, which ended after a Russian-brokered peace agreement that opened the door to ongoing normalization and demarcation talks.
Azerbaijan established full sovereignty in Karabakh in September 2023, following an "anti-terrorist operation" after which separatist forces in the region surrendered.