By AZE.US
Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan said any territorial exchange with Azerbaijan would require a nationwide referendum, but the unresolved enclave question should not delay the signing of the countries’ initialed peace agreement.
Mirzoyan, speaking to reporters on Oct. 16 after comments the previous day, said Yerevan and Baku were discussing several possible ways to resolve the enclave and exclave issue. A mutually acceptable arrangement could strengthen trust and remove technical complications along the border, he said, but no formula has been agreed.
If negotiations produce an exchange involving internationally recognized Armenian territory, the decision would have to be submitted to a nationwide vote, Mirzoyan said. He added that Azerbaijan had approached the discussions constructively but declined to predict the outcome. Armenpress reported his remarks.
Mirzoyan said the enclave question was separate from the initialed peace treaty. He argued that Baku has linked the treaty’s signing to changes in Armenia’s constitution but has not made prior settlement of the enclave issue a condition.
The minister also said some sections of the Armenia-Azerbaijan border could be delimited ahead of the usual sequence when planned infrastructure makes an earlier decision necessary. He described that approach as compatible with the broader plan to advance delimitation from north to south.
TRIPP Preparations Continue
Mirzoyan struck a cautious note on the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, or TRIPP, saying construction might not begin before the end of 2026. He said a shareholders’ agreement and the charter of the future TRIPP Development Company were still being finalized.
The U.S.-Armenia framework agreement defines the company as an Armenia-based joint venture and says Armenia retains sovereignty and jurisdiction over its borders and customs operations.
Mirzoyan said Iran had asked whether the route would involve a U.S. military presence and was told it would not. He said some reports about Iranian concern were exaggerated and that Tehran would be able to use the future railway network. Armenpress separately reported those comments.
He also said Armenia and Turkey had made enough progress for their border to be opened to passenger and freight traffic once a political decision is taken, though he gave no date.
The comments show that Yerevan is discussing concrete mechanisms for borders and transport while major implementation questions remain unresolved. There is no agreed territorial exchange, no announced date for signing the peace treaty and no confirmed start date for TRIPP construction.
Source: Vesti Baku.