AZE.US
Azerbaijan considers changes to Armenia’s Constitution a necessary condition for signing a final peace agreement between the two countries.
As AZE.US reports, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov made the statement during a joint news conference with Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis.
“Today, we can state that peace has effectively been established between Azerbaijan and Armenia. This is probably the most important point,” Bayramov said.
According to the minister, recent agreements between Baku and Yerevan were reached through direct bilateral dialogue. He said the format had demonstrated its effectiveness and that Azerbaijan was prepared to continue negotiations without outside mediators.
Bayramov said Baku’s position on the final peace agreement remained clear and consistent: provisions that Azerbaijan regards as territorial claims must be removed from Armenia’s Constitution.
Hikmet Hajiyev, assistant to the president of Azerbaijan and head of the Foreign Policy Affairs Department of the Presidential Administration, voiced a similar position in comments to Turkish media.
“We are waiting for a referendum in Armenia. If a new Constitution is adopted and the relevant provision is removed, we will see no remaining obstacle to the final signing of the peace agreement,” Hajiyev said.
He also reported progress on regional transport projects. Azerbaijan is close to completing the railway section on its territory and is rebuilding the railway infrastructure in Nakhchivan. Turkey, meanwhile, is constructing a new railway from Kars to Igdir.
The planned network is expected to connect Turkey with Nakhchivan and mainland Azerbaijan. Hajiyev said Baku also expects construction of the route through Armenia under the TRIPP framework, widely known as the “Trump Route,” to begin soon.
Bayramov also pointed to expanding economic contacts between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Azerbaijani petroleum products have already been supplied to Armenia, and the range of traded goods could expand at a later stage, he said.
According to the foreign minister, nearly 60,000 metric tons of cargo bound for or originating from Armenia have passed through Azerbaijani territory in less than a year. Azerbaijan has also sold approximately 20,000 metric tons of petroleum products to Armenia.
“I am confident that we will see this work continue,” Bayramov said.
AZE.US