Secretary of State Antony Blinken (center) hosts talks with foreign ministers Ararat Mirzoyan (right) and Jeyhun Bayramov on May 4 in Washington
Armenia and Azerbaijan continue to be at odds on key issues related to a proposed peace agreement, Parliament Vice-Speaker Ruben Rubinyan told reporters on Monday, ahead of scheduled talks in Washington this week.
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Monday that the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan, Ararat Mirzoyan and Jeyhun Bayramov will hold talks in Washington beginning Tuesday. The new round of meetings is expected to last until Thursday, Miller said.
“Very sensitive diplomatic discussions are going to take place here. We expect the talks to commence tomorrow, on Tuesday and continue through Thursday. Secretary Blinken will meet with the Foreign Ministers of both Azerbaijan and Armenia,” Millers said.
“We continue to believe that peace is within reach, and direct dialogue is key to resolving the remaining issues and reaching a durable and dignified peace,” the spokesperson added.
“We expect progress,” Rubinyan, who serves as Armenia’s special envoy on Turkey-Armenia normalization efforts said on Monday about the Washington talks.
“Armenia’s position is that we want to have the kind of text for a peace treaty that would be in our interests and would be possible to sign. Naturally, this is a difficult process, there are issues around which we disagree. But there are also issues that we already agree upon. But there are disagreements on main issues,” Rubinyan explained, adding that Yerevan expects that position of the sides may be brought closer
Rubinyan added that Yerevan is hoping that an agreement on sovereignty and jurisdiction of parties within context of unblocking transport links will be stipulated on paper.
He said Armenia wants to have a peace treaty in line with its interests as soon as possible and pointed out three most important issues.
“First, to place a specific map on the basis of mutual recognition of territorial integrity. Second, address the rights and security of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh, which we believe must take place through a direct dialogue between Baku and Stepanakert through an international mechanism. Third, the institution of guarantors,” Rubinyan said, highlighting the need for such guarantors because Azerbaijan has violated every clause of the November 9, 2020 agreement.