Armenian, Azerbaijani leaders meet in Munich after cross-border tension
- 18 February, 14:46
Leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan met in Munich on Saturday to discuss the ongoing peace treaty, days after the deadly shooting on the two countries’ shared border.
The meeting between Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev was mediated by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and held on the sidelines of Munich Security Council. During the tripartite meeting, the two sides agreed to work towards the signing of the final peace treaty, with Olaf Scholz urging Baku and Yerevan to complete the peace negotiations as soon as possible. The German chancellor welcomed the two leaders’ commitment to resolve the conflict “exclusively peacefully”. During the meeting, the Ministries of Foreign Affairs were tasked with promptly organizing meetings on the peace agreement and the border delimitation commission.
“During the tripartite conversation, Scholz advocated for the swift resolution of the peace negotiations between the two countries. Germany and Europe are ready to support it within their capabilities, including the efforts of European Council President Charles Michel,” Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s office said in its statement.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev also described the meeting as constructive, stressing that agreements had already been reached on normalizing relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan, demarcating the borders, and negotiating a peace treaty.
The trilateral meeting took place less than a week after the deadly cross-border tension between the two countries. On February 13, Armenia reported that four of its soldiers were killed in Azerbaijani attack near the Syunik region. Azerbaijan said the attack on the Armenian post was a “revenge” operation after its soldier was injured as result of an Armenian attack on its position in the Zangilan district the day earlier.
