Azerbaijani, Armenian leaders to hold normalization talks in Brussels

BRUSSELS

Leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia will hold talks on the normalization of relations in Brussels later this week, the European Council announced late Monday.

Charles Michel, the head of the European Council, will host Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on May 14, Michel’s office said.

Michel has been “in close contact with the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan to advance the EU’s efforts to promote stability in the South Caucasus and normalization between the two countries,” the statement said.

Pashinyan and Aliyev have “also agreed to continue to meet trilaterally in Brussels as frequently as necessary to address ongoing developments on the ground and standing agenda items of the Brussels meetings,” it added.

Moreover, the three leaders will have a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron at the margins of the European Political Community summit in Chisinau, Moldova on June 1.

Michel, who presides over meetings of EU leaders and represents the bloc in international affairs, has made significant diplomatic efforts for reconciliation between Armenia and Azerbaijan following their conflict in 2020.

Relations between the former Soviet republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan have been tense since 1991 when the Armenian military occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, also known as Upper Karabakh, a territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan.

In 2020, Azerbaijan liberated several cities and over 300 settlements and villages that were occupied by Armenia, and the fighting ended with a deal brokered by Russia.

However, clashes between the two sides have erupted several times since then.