Germany sought to advance negotiations on a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan on Wednesday, hosting the two countries’ foreign ministers in Berlin.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock welcomed her counterparts, Armenian Ararat Mirzoyan and Azerbaijani Jeyhun Bayramov, to an isolated government villa for two days of talks.
These latest talks follow a meeting held on February 17 between German Chancellor OIaf Scholz, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, on the sidelines of the Munich security conference. Olaf Scholz underlined Germany’s willingness to contribute to the conclusion of the peace talks, as well as that of the President of the European Council, Charles Michel.
“We believe that Armenia and Azerbaijan now have the opportunity to achieve lasting peace after years of painful conflict“said Baerbock, who visited the two countries in November, ahead of a tripartite meeting.”What we see today are courageous steps taken by both countries to draw a line under the past and work towards lasting peace for their people.”
Territorial conflicts
Armenia and Azerbaijan have a long history of territorial disputes. The latest one left at least four Armenian soldiers dead in mid-February.
Last year, Azerbaijan waged a blitzkrieg military campaign to reclaim the Karabakh region, which Armenian separatists had ruled for three decades.
The region, known internationally as Nagorno-Karabakh, and large swaths of the surrounding territory came under the full control of Armenian-backed Armenian forces following the end of a separatist war in 1994.
Azerbaijan retook parts of Karabakh and most surrounding territory in a six-week war in 2020 that ended in a Russian-brokered truce. In December 2022, Azerbaijan began blocking the road connecting the region to Armenia, causing food and fuel shortages.
Baku then launched a blitz in September 2023 that routed separatist forces within a day and forced them to lay down their arms. More than 100,000 Armenians fled the region, leaving it almost deserted.
Building on the political momentum generated by this successful military operation, Ilham Aliyev won a new mandate in a suspense-free election on February 7.
Armenia and Azerbaijan pledged to work towards signing a peace treaty, but no visible progress was made and tensions continued to rise amid mutual distrust.
“A direct dialogue like that of today and tomorrow is the best way to progress,” said Annalena Baerbock.