Azerbaijan’s president: Peace agreement depends on Armenia’s response

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev addressed the “Facing the New World Order” forum at ADA University, emphasizing that the path to peace and cooperation in the South Caucasus hinges on Armenia’s actions.

He stressed that Azerbaijan is ready to move forward with regional integration, but the responsibility now lies with Armenia, Caliber.Az reports via local media.

“If an agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia is signed, then, of course, there will be no obstacle to the beginning of cooperation,” said President Aliyev. “I think that we should not lose time, because, with respect to the peace agreement, the ball is on the Armenian side,” he added.

The President outlined Azerbaijan’s clear expectations, particularly regarding Armenia’s stance on Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity. “What we expect from Armenia to our territorial integrity and their constitution is known. As soon as it is done and peace agreement is signed, there'll be no obstacle for the South Caucasus to be the integrated region,” President Aliyev noted.

However, he acknowledged that the process of reconciliation and economic integration with Armenia would take time. “Being realist, of course, we cannot imagine that immediately we will become friends with Armenia. It is not realistic, and even talking about a kind of economic integration is premature. But we are ready for starting to make small steps towards confidence-building measures,” he said.

Reflecting on the historical challenges that have hindered regional cooperation, President Aliyev highlighted the impact of Armenia’s occupation of Azerbaijani territory. “Unfortunately, Armenian occupation of Azerbaijan's territory did not allow South Caucasus to develop as more or less integrated region. We had all chances for that, but aggression and devastation and suffering of the Azerbaijani people did not allow that to happen,” he stated.

He pointed to the relationship between Azerbaijan and Georgia as an example of what could have been achieved in the region, had it not been for Armenia’s actions. “If we look at the relationship between Azerbaijan and Georgia, we will see all those segments, which I just mentioned, energy security, transportation, political dialogue, investments, economic advantages,” said President Aliyev. “So, Armenia actually deprived itself from that, and actually, as a result of occupation and aggression, deprived itself from becoming a transit country, important transit country for Azerbaijan's energy resources and transportation routes.”

He further criticized Armenia’s missed opportunity, noting, “So, Armenia, as a result of occupation and aggression, deprived itself from becoming a transit country for Azerbaijan's energy resources and transportation routes.”

Turning to practical steps for peacebuilding, President Aliyev suggested small initial measures to build trust between Azerbaijan and Armenia. “The small steps can start, like exchange of visits of journalists, intellectuals, maybe joint sessions on Transboundary rivers, because this is a serious concern for Azerbaijan, because Armenia is polluting the Araz River,” he said. “By the way, the Kura River needs to be addressed more properly on route to Azerbaijan. So all that can have a practical impact. And with these small steps, we can try to reduce mistrust. To build trust it will take years, but at least to reduce it. So we are ready for that,” the President added.

On Azerbaijan’s broader role in regional and global affairs, President Aliyev highlighted the country’s strategic partnerships with various nations. “With many countries Azerbaijan signed or adopted the declaration on strategic partnership. So, this already established platform allows us to play an important role of a geographical, political, economic and transportation bridge between the region of Central Asia and Europe,” he said.

Furthemore, the President addressed ongoing efforts by some in Europe to undermine Azerbaijan’s regional role. “It's only enough to look at the map to understand that Azerbaijan cannot be avoided. Though, there are some in Europe who would prefer to separate Azerbaijan, not only from this process, but also to build the dividing lines in the Caucasus, particularly in the Southern Caucasus. These attempts will definitely not succeed,” President Aliyev concluded.

By Vugar Khalilov