Pashinyan and Aliyev met in Brussels 

The trilateral meeting between the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan, the President of the European Council Charles Michel and the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev took place in Brussels.

Nikol Pashinyan referred to the situation and the humanitarian issues in Artsakh caused by the recent actions of the Azerbaijani military units. Issues related to the implementation of the trilateral statements of November 9, 2020, January 11 and November 26, 2021, as well as the agreements reached at the trilateral meeting in Brussels on December 14 were discussed. Based on the results of the meeting, an agreement was reached to set up a bilateral commission on border delimitation between Armenia and Azerbaijan until the end of April envisaged in the agreement reached in Sochi on November 26, 2021, which will be authorised to deal with security and stability issues along the border. The Prime Minister of Armenia and the President of Azerbaijan instructed the Foreign Ministers to start preparations for peace talks between the two countries.

Prior to the trilateral meeting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan had a private conversation with the President of the European Council Charles Michel.

The interlocutors referred to the trilateral meeting of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan, the President of the European Council Charles Michel and the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev scheduled for today, attaching importance to the continuation of the dialogue. Nikol Pashinyan presented the situation in Artsakh following the recent actions of the Azerbaijani units, the humanitarian issues and stressed the need for an addressed reaction of the international community. The Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia and Charles Michel exchanged views on the implementation process of the agreements reached during the trilateral meeting held in Brussels on December 14 last year.

Nikol Pashinyan and Charles Michel also discussed issues related to the Armenia-EU bilateral agenda, in particular, the implementation of the €2.6 billion economic and investment plan declared by the EU for Armenia.

Earlier the Speaker of the National Assembly of the Artsakh Republic Arthur Tovmasyan commented to the upcoming trilateral meeting, saying: "Artsakh cannot be part of Azerbaijan, it is impossible. This is realized by our partners in Armenia and the international community in the person of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair countries. We use all the inter-parliamentary and diplomatic opportunities; we regularly inform about the developments that are taking place in Artsakh. And they simply prove every time the well-known truth that this problem has one solution, which must take place on the basis of the international principle of self-determination of nations," said Tovmasyan.

According to the NA Speaker, today there is no peace in Artsakh, there is relative silence, it is not appropriate to speak about peace, when the points of the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020 are regularly being violated.

"The Republic of Armenia has been and should be the number one guarantor of the security of our people. Together we must find our own place in the rapidly changing world order; in this context, the Armenia-Artsakh-Diaspora trinity is very important. The statement adopted by the Parliament yesterday contained these messages."

Russian Ambassador to Armenia Sergey Kopyrkin also commented on the upcoming meeting, noting that Russia is interested in Armenia and Azerbaijan reaching agreements aimed at resolving the situation.

"Officials of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Defense have repeatedly spoken about the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh. I think what has been said shows quite convincingly the position of Russia. As for the Pashinyan-Aliyev meeting, Russia's position is clear, we are interested in reaching agreements and resolving the situation. The Russian Federation has a continuous and great investment in this issue, we are persistently working in that direction," Kopyrkin said.

Prime Minister Pashinyan holds telephone conversation with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken

The interlocutors touched upon the issues on the agenda of the Armenian-US relations, highlighted the further development and strengthening of bilateral cooperation in various spheres. The Prime Minister thanked the American side for its support to Armenia in the direction of democratic reforms, noting that the further strengthening of democracy is the policy adopted by the Armenian Government. Nikol Pashinyan and Antony Blinken referred to the processes taking place in the South Caucasus, the increasing tensions over Nagorno Karabakh. Nikol Pashinyan presented the situation in Artsakh caused by the actions of the Azerbaijani units, the humanitarian issues and attached importance to the addressed reaction of the United States. The parties stressed the importance of ensuring stability and peace in the region, emphasizing the importance of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs’ format. The sides also referred to the trilateral meeting to be held in Brussels on April 6.

The Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia and the US Secretary of State exchanged views on the demarcation and delimitation of border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the possibility of unblocking communications in the region, as well as the ongoing dialogue between Armenia and Turkey. The sides also referred to the processes taking place in the international arena, including the situation in Ukraine.

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