News - Armenia FM informs OSCE Chairman-in-Office about results of Kazakhstan talks with Azerbaijan counterpart

Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan informed the OSCE Chairman-in-Office as well as Minister of Foreign and European Affairs and Trade of Malta, Ian Borg, about the results of his negotiations with the Azerbaijani FM in Almaty, Kazakhstan. At the joint news conference on Monday, Mirzoyan informed that he discussed, with the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, the challenges in the world and in the OSCE area of responsibility. "The OSCE faces serious challenges that require effective use of all mechanisms," Mirzoyan stated, adding that the South Caucasus region also faces serious challenges that violate principles such as territorial integrity and sovereignty. "They directly refer to the OSCE mandate and emphasize the importance of targeted participation. In this way, the vision of cooperation with the organization was discussed," added Mirzoyan. The parties conferred also about the security of the South Caucasus, Mirzoyan presented the situation in the negotiation process with Azerbaijan, including the details of the last respective meeting in Almaty, Kazakhstan. The Armenian FM informed about the April 19 agreement between the heads of the border delimitation commissions of Armenia and Azerbaijan that the Almaty Declaration of 1991 shall be the basis of the border delimitation process. "That agreement was another confirmation of the statements made by the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan before that," Mirzoyan noted, reminding that the Almaty Declaration shall become the basis for border delimitation, with mutual acceptance of territorial integrity, which the parties first agreed on in Prague in 2022 and later was confirmed several times. According to Mirzoyan, Armenia is convinced that the documenting of this principle and the peace treaty and its signing will end the long-term conflict and peace will be established in the region. "There are also other elements: unblocking [regional] communications, our Crossroads of Peace initiative about this. We are interested in the opening of communications; at the first phase, it is the railway link with Azerbaijan. Naturally, the communications shall be under the sovereignty of the countries through which they pass, unblocking shall take place in accordance with the principle of equality and reciprocity," said the Armenian FM. Ararat Mirzoyan informed that he discussed also Armenia-Malta relations with Ian Borg, and that the two parties are ready to deepen ties.