UAE welcomes Azerbaijan-armenia border deal
ABUDHABI: The UAE has welcomed the agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia regarding the delimitation and demarcation of land borders, in the area of four villages, highlighting that the UAE is following the evolving confidence-building process and peace reinforcement between the two countries.
The UAE expresses hope that this significant step will strengthen bridges of communication and dialogue, and contribute to fostering stability and constructive cooperation in the Caucasus region.
Ahmed Bin Ali Al Sayegh, Minister of State, emphasised that this positive development, established through direct communications, represents an important step towards a comprehensive peace agreement that bolsters development and peace on both regional and international levels, which would benefit both countries and their peoples, and fulfill their mutual interests, while achieving further prosperity and growth.
Al Sayegh affirmed that the UAE holds close and distinguished ties with both the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Republic of Armenia, and underscores the country’s commitment to reinforce peace and stability in the region, while emphasising the importance of building bridges, and fostering cooperation and dialogue to resolve differences by peaceful means.
Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesperson Aykhan Hajizada posted on X that Armenia would return four villages near the countries’ shared border that had been “under occupation” since the early 1990s, and called it a “long-awaited historic event.”
In Armenia, the state news agency quoted the prime minister’s office as saying: “In this process, the Republic of Armenia receives a reduction in risks associated with border delimitation and security.”
It said the handover in practice involved only “two and a half villages” because Azerbaijan already partly controlled the settlements involved, but added that the demarcation of the border was a “significant event.”
The settlements are deserted but are strategically important as they are close to Armenia’s main highway north towards the border with Georgia, through which much of its trade is done, and to the pipeline through which it receives gas from Russia.
The agreement was reached at a meeting on the two countries’ border, chaired by their deputy prime ministers.
Azerbaijan has been demanding the villages’ return as a precondition for a peace deal after more than three decades of conflict, mostly centred on the region of Nagorno-karabakh.