Pashinyan: Armenia and Azerbaijan have reached consensus on the fundamental principles of the peace agreement

In a statement  made on November 18 during the autumn session of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly in Yerevan, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan revealed that Armenia and Azerbaijan have reached a consensus on the fundamental principles of a peace agreement. Pashinyan acknowledged both positive and negative developments in the Armenian-Azerbaijani peace process.

On a positive note, he disclosed that the two nations have agreed on key peace principles, thanks in part to the mediation efforts of European Council head Charles Michel and Pashinyan's meetings with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Brussels. According to Pashinyan, the first principle involves mutual recognition of territorial integrity, specifying Armenia's territory as 29.8 thousand square kilometers and Azerbaijan's as 86.6 thousand square kilometers. The second principle is rooted in the 1991 Alma-Ata Declaration, serving as the political foundation for border delineation between Armenia and Azerbaijan, based on maps from the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the former USSR from 1974 to 1990.

Pashinyan also emphasized the third principle, which focuses on the reopening of regional communications, guided by principles such as sovereignty, jurisdiction, reciprocity, and equality among the countries involved.

However, Pashinyan expressed concerns about the persisting challenge of communication between the two nations due to differing diplomatic approaches and a history of conflict, casualties, prisoners, longstanding animosity, and suspicions of hidden agendas. He noted that these challenges apply to both Armenia and Azerbaijan to varying degrees.