Both Armenia and Azerbaijan Principally Agree on Certain Conditions: Blinken

After an intensive and constructive series of bilateral and trilateral discussions, significant progress has been made in resolving complex issues, stated U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, summarizing the four-day negotiations between the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan in Arlington.

“Both sides demonstrated a sincere commitment to the normalization of relations and to ending the long-standing conflict between the two countries. Both Armenia and Azerbaijan have principally agreed on certain conditions and have a better understanding of each other's positions regarding unresolved issues,” the American official said.

Blinken also spoke at the concluding trilateral meeting with Ararat Mirzoyan and Jeyhun Bayramov, noting that “both sides have made tangible progress toward a sustainable peace agreement on a number of very complex issues during the negotiations held in the Washington suburbs.”

“I believe the pace of the negotiations and the foundation built by our partners show that (a peace) agreement is truly within our reach. I think we are very close to it,” Blinken noted.

The Secretary of State believes that reaching a peace agreement “will not only be a historic event but will also serve the interests of the peoples of Azerbaijan and Armenia and have very positive consequences even beyond the borders of the two countries.”

Following the negotiations held in Arlington from May 1-4, the foreign ministries of Armenia and Azerbaijan issued a joint statement noting that the parties have made progress in mutual understanding, but “the positions on a number of key issues remain divergent.”