Turkish, Azerbaijani foreign ministers discuss peace talks with Armenia

ANKARA/ISTANBUL

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan held on Friday a phone call with his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov to discuss the ongoing peace talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

According to Turkish diplomatic sources, the two ministers exchanged views on the talks aimed at resolving long-standing tensions between the neighboring countries.

No further details were provided about the content or outcomes of the discussion.

Relations between the two former Soviet republics have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Karabakh – a territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan – and seven adjacent regions.

Most of the territory was liberated by Azerbaijan during a 44-day war in the fall of 2020, which ended after a Russian-brokered peace agreement that opened the door to normalization and demarcation talks.

In September 2023, Azerbaijan established full sovereignty in Karabakh after separatist forces in the region surrendered.

On March 13, Baku and Yerevan declared that they had reached a consensus on all 17 articles of a peace deal, though an agreement has yet to be signed.