Azerbaijan says progress in normalization with Armenia 'falls short of expectations'

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Azerbaijan on Monday said progress in the normalization process with Armenia "fell short of expectations" in terms of “drafting a peace treaty, the delimitation of the state border and the restoration of transport and communication.”

“We call upon the Armenian side to demonstrate goodwill and invest more efforts in the normalization talks in all dimensions,” Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov told a press conference with his Lithuanian counterpart Gabrielius Landsbergis in Vilnius, Lithuania’s capital.

“We believe that the best way forward goes through the normalization of relations between the two countries based on mutual recognition and respect for each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” he added.

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

Most of the territory was liberated by Baku during a war in the fall of 2020, which ended after a Russian-brokered peace agreement and also opened the door to normalization.

Bayramov said he and Landsbergis discussed bilateral relations, which are “based on solid foundations and high-level political dialogue.”

“The joint declaration on the development of partnership signed between the presidents of the two countries in 2007 reflects the strategic nature of our cooperation,” he added.

Bayramov said he and his Lithuanian counterpart discussed political, economic and humanitarian aspects of bilateral cooperation and the current situation in the region.

He called the EU as Azerbaijan’s main trading partner, saying that they also explored ways to deepen transit and economic cooperation, the importance of which has increased “due to the situation in the broader region.”

For his part, Landsbergis said his meeting with Bayramov also touched upon matters of regional security such as Ukraine and the South Caucasus.