Chaired by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, a regular Cabinet meeting was held today.

Before discussing the issues on the agenda, the Head of the Government presented the results of the meeting with the president of Azerbaijan held in Brussels on May 14 at the mediation of the President of the European Council. .

In his speech, Nikol Pashinyan particularly said,

"Dear participants of the Cainet meeting,

Dear people,

On May 14, my meeting with the leader of Azerbaijan took place in Brussels through the mediation of Charles Michel, the President of the European Council. As you remember, during the meeting held in Prague on October 6, 2022 at the mediation of the President of France and the President of the European Council, the president of Azerbaijan and I reaffirmed our countries' commitment to the UN Charter and the Alma Ata Declaration of 1991, stressing that we recognize the territorial integrity and sovereignty of each other based on those documents, we also confirmed that this will be the basis for the work of the border delimitation commissions.

On May 14, we actually took another step and, as indicated in the statement of the President of the European Council following the May 14 meeting, we noted that Azerbaijan recognizes Armenia’s territorial integrity in 29,800 square kilometers, and Armenia recognizes Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity in 86,600 square kilometers.

I have to record that I consider this an important step for the establishment of stability and peace in the region, in terms of the finalization of the text of the peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan and the delimitation of the borders as well. But, of course, the next step must be identifying and consenting on concrete grounds for delimitation that have legal force and significance.

I want to draw special attention to the fact that in the statement of the President of the European Council following the tripartite meeting on May 14, the importance of the dialogue between Baku and Stepanakert on the rights and security of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh in cooperation with the international community was emphasized. This is a process that is essential for a real and comprehensive settlement of relations with Azerbaijan and the establishment of lasting peace in the region. Therefore, it will greatly accelerate the signing of the peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

I should emphasize that a certain positive understanding was formed in Brussels regarding the restoration of the Armenia-Azerbaijan railway, but taking into account the previous experience, I will refrain from any specification in this regard. I would like to emphasize once again that the Republic of Armenia is ready to implement the opening of the communications provided for in paragraph 9 of the trilateral declaration of November 9, 2020 and again in the trilateral statement of January 11, as soon as possible, based on the principles of sovereignty, jurisdiction, equality and reciprocity of the parties.

You have learned from the statement of the President of the European Council that there was also a certain understanding regarding the further release of prisoners and other detained persons, clarification of the fates of the missing, but considering the extremely sensitive nature of the issue, I will only say that the discussions on this topic will continue during the upcoming meetings.

Let me remind you that a meeting at the level of foreign ministers is expected on May 19 in Moscow. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia has already left for Moscow. We have already received an offer from the Russian side to hold a tripartite meeting at the highest level in Moscow on May 25 through the mediation of the President of the Russian Federation, and we have accepted that offer.

A five-sided meeting with the participation of French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is planned for June 1 in Chișinău within the framework of the second summit of the European Political Community. Such a five-sided meeting is also scheduled for October in Granada. The next tripartite meeting in Brussels is scheduled for July.

Dear participants of the Cabinet meeting,

Dear people,

Despite some progress in the negotiations, Azerbaijan continues to pursue a policy of escalation on the border with Armenia. In the previous days, shots were fired at our borders and we have suffered casualties. Bowing my head to our fallen brothers, I want to emphasize again that, especially against the background of the agreements of May 14, the simultaneous withdrawal of troops from the border line and the demilitarization of the border line become more urgent. And we will continue to emphasize this agenda.

The illegal blocking of the Lachin Corridor is another manifestation of Azerbaijan's policy of escalation, which once again highlights the legitimate need for an international presence in Nagorno-Karabakh and the Lachin Corridor. We are discussing this topic with all our international partners."