Armenia supports Azerbaijan's policy in South Caucasus

The positions of Yerevan and Baku have moved substantially closer this year, Armenia’s Security Council Secretary Armen Grigoryan said during a panel discussion with Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan Hikmet Hajiyev at an international forum in Qatar's Doha.

"One or two years ago, at any meeting opportunity, we would have discussed conflicting narratives. Now many of them are close; some do not coincide, but I am confident we will strengthen cooperation so that the prospects for the future are better," Armen Grigoryan said.

According to him, a key role in shifting Armenia to a fully peaceful path in its contacts with Azerbaijan was played by the August 8 summit of the two countries' leaders with U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington. That meeting resulted in a Joint Declaration by President Ilham Aliyev and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and the initialing of an Azerbaijan-Armenia peace treaty.

Grigoryan explained that Yerevan's approach to the settlement has been significantly influenced by President Trump's desire to stabilize peace in the South Caucasus. The Security Council Secretary noted that the contours of the Washington summit were outlined during the Aliyev-Pashinyan negotiations in Abu Dhabi on July 10.

The official acknowledged that previous diplomatic efforts by mediators to regulate post-war relations between the two countries were ineffective because Yerevan did not have the goal of achieving permanent peace with Baku. Now, however, the Armenian side is committed to fully cementing a peaceful state of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia for decades to come.

"Political will is needed from both sides, and the international community can support peacebuilding. I am confident international players have an interest in this, in the form of new economic opportunities and investments," Armen Grigoryan said.