Armenia must amend its constitution before signing a peace treaty with Azerbaijan, stated Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov on Thursday, reiterating a precondition set by Baku.
During a visit to Georgia, Bayramov highlighted that the Armenian constitution includes territorial claims to Azerbaijan, which he described as “the most serious obstacle to concluding the peace process.” He noted that both sides have significantly narrowed their differences on key terms of the treaty, speaking at a joint news conference with his Georgian counterpart Ilia Darchiashvili.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev echoed this stance on June 6, asserting that Azerbaijan would not sign the peace deal unless Armenia changes its constitution. He demanded that Yerevan remove a reference to a 1990 declaration of independence, which cites a 1989 unification act adopted by the legislative bodies of Soviet Armenia and the then Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast.
The Armenian Foreign Ministry responded by accusing Aliyev of “torpedoing the peace process,” arguing that one of the “agreed provisions” of a draft accord stipulates that parties cannot use their domestic legislation as an excuse for non-compliance with the document. The ministry stated that Yerevan is ready to finalize and sign the treaty within a month.
“I cannot say that we have seen a positive reaction from our Azerbaijani counterparts to this proposal to sign the peace treaty within a month,” complained Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan during a visit to Estonia on Thursday. He added that the treaty has been “almost finalized” by both sides.
Last week, Mirzoyan’s ministry suggested that Azerbaijan might be planning a “new aggression” against Armenia after hosting the COP29 summit in November, citing Baku’s angry reaction to a recent French-Armenian arms deal signed in Paris.
