Yerevan manipulates, Baku awaits clarity Armenian provocations instead of peace

The Armenian authorities still seem unwilling to let go of their illusions about a "truncated" peace treaty with Azerbaijan, hoping to sign it without fulfilling Baku’s key conditions. Baku, it should be recalled, demands that Yerevan amend Armenia’s Constitution to eliminate territorial claims against Azerbaijan and formally dissolve the now-defunct OSCE Minsk Group. However, the latest statements by Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan, made during a joint press conference with his Iranian counterpart Seyed Abbas Araghchi, have once again confirmed that normalising relations with Azerbaijan is far from being on Yerevan’s immediate agenda. On the contrary, the Armenian authorities have come up with yet another absurd excuse to stall the negotiation process.

Thus, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan pompously declared that despite Baku’s “new conditions,” Yerevan remains ready to continue negotiations. According to him, Azerbaijan has not confirmed its readiness to discuss the timing and location of the document’s signing and has instead started putting forward conditions. "What should we do? Continue working, negotiating, and seeking dignified solutions that ensure lasting peace," the minister said, expressing dissatisfaction that there is still no clarity on where and when the document might be signed.

The Armenian side's absurd pretext about Baku’s "new conditions" is nothing more than yet another Yerevan-led gambit aimed at derailing negotiations and drawing international attention. This conclusion is obvious, as Azerbaijan’s conditions for a peace treaty with Armenia have remained unchanged and have been consistently voiced over the past two and a half years. Moreover, not only Armenia but also the international community is well aware of them.

President Ilham Aliyev has repeatedly emphasised at various international platforms and in media interviews that a peace agreement between Baku and Yerevan can only be signed once Armenia addresses the issues related to its constitution and the OSCE Minsk Group. Baku, therefore, had every reason to firmly counter the rhetoric of Armenia’s foreign minister—a move that was swiftly undertaken by the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, which dismissed the Armenian minister’s claims as baseless and warned that such tactics, designed to mislead the international community, would yield no results.

“On 25 March 2025, the allegations by the Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan during the joint press conference with Sayyid Abbas Araghchi, Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran, that Azerbaijan was presenting new conditions following the agreement on the text of the peace treaty, are entirely unfounded. The Armenian Foreign Minister is well aware that the demand to remove the provision against Azerbaijan's territorial integrity and sovereignty in the Armenian constitution, as well as to formally dissolve the Minsk Group, has been among the important topics of the negotiation process for the past two and a half years,” the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry stated.

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Moreover, Baku emphasised that Armenia’s territorial claims against Azerbaijan, as reflected in its constitution, were officially presented to Yerevan back in May 2023 during a meeting in Washington, noting that third parties were also informed of this issue.

It is worth recalling that on 1 May 2023, Azerbaijani and Armenian Foreign Ministers Jeyhun Bayramov and Ararat Mirzoyan held negotiations in Washington, mediated by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Following the talks, U.S. State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel stated during a regular press briefing that the Azerbaijani and Armenian delegations had reached an understanding on certain provisions of a potential peace agreement. During these negotiations, which focused on the draft peace treaty, the Azerbaijani side clearly outlined Baku’s key conditions—conditions that Ararat Mirzoyan now appears to have conveniently forgotten.

Secondly, there is little doubt that the Armenian side hopes to sign a formal peace document with Azerbaijan rather than a comprehensive agreement, allowing it to continue its aggressive policies. This is evidenced by the following fact: almost immediately after Yerevan expressed agreement with Baku’s conditions for the peace treaty, the Armenian side resumed military provocations along the conditional border.

It is clear that, despite Armenia’s empty assurances of commitment to regional peace, Yerevan still harbours revanchist ambitions. On the other hand, it is also possible that the border shootings are part of an external agenda dictated by Armenia’s new patrons, who are concerned about the prospect of normalised relations between Baku and Yerevan after the signing of a peace agreement.

Another telling sign is that Yerevan brazenly accuses Baku of spreading disinformation about border violations—an allegation indirectly confirmed by Mirzoyan himself. When asked a provocative question about what Yerevan should do in response to Baku’s so-called disinformation on border incidents, the Armenian minister simply deflected, referring once again to Azerbaijan’s alleged lack of confirmation regarding the timing and location of the treaty’s signing.

It is evident that, apart from his false accusations against Azerbaijan, the Armenian minister has no factual evidence to support claims of Baku’s involvement in military provocations along the conditional border. The policy of baseless allegations has long been a standard practice for Yerevan, dating back to the period of occupation of the Azerbaijani territories—an occupation that was tacitly tolerated by the ineffectual OSCE Minsk Group, whose dissolution Yerevan desperately seeks to avoid.

Therefore, it is highly likely that the Armenian armed forces will continue attempting to create tensions along the border through further provocations to stall negotiations with Azerbaijan. Unfortunately, Yerevan has yet to learn the necessary lessons from its past mistakes. The Armenian authorities still fear admitting that such tactics led to their humiliating defeat in 2020 and now only promise further troubles—potentially even the ultimate loss of Armenian statehood.

Before making absurd accusations against Baku regarding so-called "new conditions," Armenian officials must firmly grasp one essential truth: Baku has not altered its demands. It expects concrete action from Yerevan—namely, the official dissolution of the Minsk Group and constitutional amendments removing territorial claims against Azerbaijan. These are Azerbaijan’s two key conditions. Whether Armenia chooses to follow the path of peace or remain stuck in a deadlock is up to Yerevan. Regardless, there will be no alternative course of action for Armenia.