By AZE.US
Azerbaijan and Armenia are shifting their normalization process toward practical cooperation, with transportation links, border delimitation and bilateral trade now taking priority while a formal peace treaty remains on hold.
Azerbaijani analyst Farhad Mammadov and Armenian analyst Aregh Kochinyan said the latest meeting between President Ilham Aliyev and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan confirmed that the two governments remain committed to their previous agreements.
Speaking on Events of the Week on Pressclubs TV, a joint platform of the Baku and Yerevan press clubs, the analysts said the process had entered a more stable phase following Armenia’s parliamentary elections.
The two countries can now plan negotiations over several years instead of working within the short political timetable that existed before the vote, Mammadov said.
However, the peace treaty itself has not advanced.
“The issue is effectively on hold,” Kochinyan said, describing the agreement as temporarily “parked.”
Despite that delay, Baku and Yerevan continue to negotiate directly on transportation, border delimitation and economic cooperation. Contacts could also expand to include lawmakers, business representatives and civil society groups.
TRIPP Construction Could Begin in 2027
The proposed Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, known as TRIPP, is emerging as the most important practical project in the normalization process.
According to Kochinyan, a feasibility study is expected to be completed by December, allowing construction to begin in 2027.
Armenia is also preparing to register a joint development company involving its government and a U.S.-based entity. The company would oversee contractors, construction and the future operation of the route.
Mammadov said the border sections through which TRIPP would pass could receive priority during delimitation talks.
The Azerbaijan-Armenia border extends for more than 1,000 kilometers, while slightly more than 11 kilometers have reportedly been formally delimited.
Direct Trade Is the Next Test
The two governments are also discussing the first direct Armenian exports to Azerbaijan, although no list of products has been disclosed.
Mammadov said the initial shipments could include raw materials or goods intended for processing. Regular trade will still require solutions to transportation costs, customs procedures and the absence of direct banking payments.
Azerbaijan has already begun supplying petroleum products to Armenia, turning what was initially a politically sensitive development into a more routine commercial transaction.
Kochinyan said reciprocal trade could make the peace process more difficult to reverse. Armenia could use Azerbaijan as a route toward Russia, while Azerbaijan could gain a shorter transit connection through Armenia to Turkey and European markets.
The latest talks therefore indicate that Baku and Yerevan are no longer limiting normalization to political declarations. Even without a signed peace treaty, the two countries are beginning to construct the economic and transportation links on which a durable settlement could eventually depend.
AZE.US