Brussles (The Brussles Morning Newspaper) – EU Council President Charles Michel revives peace efforts in the South Caucasus, urging Armenia and Azerbaijan to finalize their agreement. Tensions rise amid stalled negotiations and recent military actions.
What Are Charles Michel’s New Peace Efforts in the Caucasus?
European Council President Charles Michel is reviving efforts to bring a lasting peace to the South Caucasus, as anxieties rise in the war-torn region. Two senior diplomats verified that the former Belgian prime minister had carried out bilateral discussions with the leaders of both Armenia and Azerbaijan on the sidelines of the European Political Community meeting in the United Kingdom earlier this month.
EU Council President Charles Michel has also reported to the two sides, calling on them to return to the table and “finalize the peace agreement” by making headway on outstanding issues like border delimitation. However, frustration has been increasing in Brussels after months of delays and diplomatic impasse that has seen a long-awaited truce fail to materialize.
What Issues Are Hindering the Armenia-Azerbaijan Peace Agreement?
Despite the discussions with Michel, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev failed to discover an opportunity to sit down together — with both flanks pointing the finger at the other for the standoff. “Ultimately, it’s up to both sides to stop playing games and seal the deal as President Michel has done everything in the EU’s power to reach a peace agreement,” a senior EU diplomat close to Michel stated.
The previously unreported outreach arrives just nine months after Azerbaijan undertook a military offensive to retake the breakaway territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, sparking an exodus of its 100,000 ethnic Armenian citizens. The violence came after months of discussions hosted by Michel and despite signs from the West that only a diplomatic solution could bring peace to the region.
Now, pressures are once again rising and Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Defense last week blamed Armenia for “committing provocations” along the two nations shared border and threatened to “take necessary response measures using all means at their disposal for self-defence.” Armenia says the assertions are disinformation. Azerbaijan, which has succeeded at least two wars against Armenia since 2020, also attacked military support provided by EU countries like France to Yerevan to create a balance of power between the two historic rivals.
