Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty negotiations to be resumed in  Brussels in very near future - Michel

ArmInfo. The European Union is working to sign a peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia,  negotiations on the agreement will resume in the very near future in Brussels. European Council President Charles Michel stated in an interview with the RFE/RL's Azerbaijani service.

Answering the question about whether the peace agreement will be  signed directly between the parties or with the support of  international mediators, Michel noted that the main thing is the  result. "For me, the main thing is the result. We worked very closely  with Azerbaijan and Armenia to restore mutual trust. As you know,  there were great difficulties between the parties both historically  and in relations with each other. But we have made some progress, and  I am very I am optimistic on this issue. We are committed to working  towards the signing of a peace agreement between the parties," the EU  head said, welcoming the joint statement of Armenia and Azerbaijan on  the exchange of prisoners.  Speaking about the guarantor of the  implementation of the provisions of the treaty, Michel said that the  international community, including the European Union, is following  what is happening in the region, because the more the South Caucasus  advances in terms of security and economic development, the better  for the European Union and the world.

"For example, we believe that the rights of ethnic Armenians to  return to the Karabakh region or at least to visit it should be  guaranteed. This should be ensured in accordance with international  standards in terms of protecting the security of national minorities.  This should be guaranteed within the framework of protecting national  minorities with the inclusion of the problem in the Constitution of  Azerbaijan. We are negotiating with both Nikol Pashinyan and Ilham  Aliyev to eliminate all difficulties," the EU head emphasized.

Regarding the issue of including a separate article on the rights and  security of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh in the peace agreement,  Michel said that he did not want to go into details so as not to  complicate the issue. "Now it is necessary to sign a peace treaty  between Azerbaijan and Armenia to regulate relations. This peace  agreement should be based on border demarcation, which can be a good  basis for improving transport links in the region and will have a  positive impact on the economic development of the entire region. As  for the Armenians of Karabakh, the European Union keeps this issue in  the spotlight; we are making efforts in this matter. We are trying to  convince the Azerbaijani side to openly demonstrate their goodwill. I  sincerely believe that as a result of these discussions we will be  able to achieve progress on an issue that is a priority for the  European Union," the head of the EU emphasized.

He also touched on warnings from Western officials to Azerbaijan to  refrain from using force against Armenia. "Currently, discussions are  underway regarding various models of transport links that will  connect Azerbaijan with Nakhichevan. President Aliyev has clearly  stated many times that there are no territorial claims against  Armenia, but discussions are underway on specific models. There must  be such a model so that the territorial integrity of Armenia is not  violated,"  Michel noted.

When asked how he would interpret the fact that negotiations reached  a dead end in the last month and the Azerbaijani side refused  meetings mediated by the European Union and the United States, the  head of the EU recalled that on December 11, a meeting between the  Azerbaijani Foreign Minister and the EU High Representative for  Foreign Affairs and Security Policy took place. "This shows that we  are in constant contact with both sides. There will be a meeting with  the Foreign Minister of Armenia soon. We are very active behind the  scenes, making every effort to make progress with both Azerbaijan and  Armenia.  Joint Statement of Azerbaijan and Armenia was also done  because we partially participated in this work, helped them in this  matter, expressed certain proposals and ideas to bring their  positions closer together on the issues included in the statement. We  continue to work on further steps towards signing a peace agreement,"  Michel said, adding that the The EU is working to organize meetings  that can be held in Brussels. According to him, the result of the  meeting is more important than the location where it is held.