“Homework” for Armenia Constitutional change is not a formality, but an obligation

The signing in Washington of the historic Joint Declaration — in which it was confirmed that the leaders of Azerbaijan, Armenia, and the President of the United States witnessed the initialling of the agreed text of the “Agreement on the Establishment of Peace and Interstate Relations between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Republic of Armenia” by the foreign ministers of the two countries — has become a landmark in the modern history of the South Caucasus. However, as is well known, the initialling of a document is a preliminary stage preceding its official signing. For a full-fledged treaty between Azerbaijan and Armenia to be signed in the very near future, it is essential that official Yerevan take the most important step — to amend its constitution.

It should be recalled that the Basic Law of the Republic of Armenia still contains provisions with territorial claims against Azerbaijan, which are not only an anachronism left over from the era of confrontation, but also a direct obstacle to the signing of the peace treaty.

As the President of Azerbaijan stated in an interview with representatives of Azerbaijani media, following the signing of the Washington Declaration, Armenia has homework to do — to remove from its constitution all provisions containing territorial claims against Azerbaijan.

President Ilham Aliyev also made it clear that any delay in resolving this issue would be regarded, first and foremost, as a sign of disrespect towards the United States of America, which has assumed a key mediating role, and personally towards President Donald Trump.

Let us take a brief look back at history and recall that long before the 44-day Patriotic War, Baku had put forward every possible option for resolving the Karabakh conflict, including security guarantees. However, Yerevan opted for a policy of provocations, militarisation, and sabotaging the negotiation process: Pashinyan declared that “Karabakh is Armenia, period,” while then Defence Minister David Tonoyan dreamily spoke about seizing new Azerbaijani lands. The outcome of all this is well known: the Republic of Azerbaijan achieved a decisive military and political victory, restoring its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

This also marked the end of illusions about the supposed “permanence” of the OSCE Minsk Group, whose activities had, for decades, preserved the status quo and yielded no results. Azerbaijan succeeded in breaking the deadlock in the peace process and in securing a fundamental shift in the regional agenda. Yerevan long resisted the proposal to abolish the OSCE Minsk Group, but ultimately, in Washington, a joint appeal to the OSCE was signed, calling for the closure of the Minsk process and its related structures.

The Washington Declaration undoubtedly marks a qualitatively new stage in advancing towards the signing of a comprehensive peace agreement. From now on, Azerbaijan and Armenia have officially affirmed their respect for each other’s territorial integrity — yet words must be backed by concrete actions.

For Armenia, this means the urgent need to amend its Basic Law. This is neither a formality nor a symbolic gesture, but an obligation arising from international agreements. Such a step will demonstrate that Yerevan is definitively abandoning its revanchist ambitions and choosing a path of good neighbourliness. It will also serve as a signal to the international community that the South Caucasus is ready to move from decades of conflict to an era of stability and development.

Azerbaijan hopes that Armenia’s leadership will recognise its historic responsibility — to its own citizens, to future generations, and to neighbouring countries. The peoples of the South Caucasus deserve to live in an atmosphere of trust, peace, and prosperity. But peace is not just words — it is, above all, political will and concrete action. In Armenia’s case, it comes down to one decisive act: amending the constitution to remove all provisions containing territorial claims against the Republic of Azerbaijan. In short, the ball is now in Yerevan’s court.