UPDATE - Azerbaijan announces consensus on all articles of peace deal with Armenia

UPDATES WITH STATEMENTS FROM AZERBAIJANI, ARMENIAN FOREIGN MINISTRIES

By Elena Teslova and Burc Eruygur

MOSCOW / ISTANBUL (AA) - The Azerbaijani foreign minister announced on Thursday that a consensus has been reached on all articles of the peace agreement with Armenia.

Speaking at a news conference in Azerbaijan's capital Baku, Jeyhun Bayramov explained that Armenia had initially refused to accept two articles of the agreement but had recently agreed to them.

"We had previously reported that the last two articles remained unapproved. However, the Armenian side has now informed us that it accepts Azerbaijan’s proposals on these two issues," Bayramov noted.

A later statement from the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry reiterated Baku's position that amending Armenia’s constitution to eliminate the claims against its sovereignty and territorial integrity is "a prerequisite to allow the signing of the negotiated text."

"Furthermore, we emphasize the necessity to formally abolish the obsolete and dysfunctional Minsk Group and related structures of the OSCE (Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe)," the statement said.

"We are ready to continue the bilateral dialogue on these and other issues related to the normalization process between the two countries," it added.

The Armenian Foreign Ministry, for its part, said that Yerevan conveyed its acceptance of the remaining two articles through diplomatic channels, and that the negotiations have now concluded.

"The Republic of Armenia is prepared to initiate consultations with the Republic of Azerbaijan regarding the time and venue for the signing of the Agreement," it said.

Relations between the two former Soviet republics 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 a 44-day war in the fall of 2020, which ended after a Russian-brokered peace agreement that opened the door to normalization and demarcation talks.

In September 2023, Azerbaijan established full sovereignty in Karabakh following an "anti-terrorist operation" after which separatist forces in the region surrendered.