Pashinyan on the Issue of Opening Transport Communications between Armenia and Azerbaijan

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan participated in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Tianjin, China, and delivered a speech. He notably mentioned:

“Honored President Xi Jinping, esteemed Nurlan Yermekbaev, your excellencies, esteemed delegates, first of all, I would like to express my gratitude to President Xi Jinping for the invitation to participate in the meeting in the SCO+ format within the framework of the summit under the presidency of the People's Republic of China. It is a great honor for me to participate in the summit for the first time as a platform for dialogue, trust, and cooperation. I am confident that steps taken under the presidency of China will contribute to the revelation of new directions for cooperation within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, resulting in new achievements.

Dear colleagues, on August 8, with the support of U.S. President Donald Trump, we signed a peace declaration with the President of Azerbaijan, and an agreement on peace and interstate relations between the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Azerbaijan was initialed. Thus, peace has been established between Armenia and Azerbaijan. This is a historic turning point that will have a much broader regional impact. Yesterday, the leaders participating in the summit congratulated both us and Azerbaijan on the established peace, and I want to thank everyone for their congratulations.

Currently, we are discussing the issue of opening transport communications between our two countries based on territorial integrity, sovereignty, legal authority, and principles. These efforts will involve uninterrupted communication through the territory of the Republic of Armenia between the main part of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, with mutual advantages for both international and domestic communication for the Republic of Armenia.

I want to emphasize that the terminology agreed upon in the declaration accepted by the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan should be utilized, and I believe that using this clarified and agreed terminology will contribute to a constructive atmosphere and the realization of further work. I would also like to inform my colleagues that, in particular, the vocabulary used by the President of Azerbaijan is not perceived by us within the logic we agreed upon in Washington, especially considering that under these agreements, the Republic of Armenia and the United States will implement the communication investment program called ‘Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity’. This program stems from the Republic of Armenia’s ‘Peace Intersection’ initiative, regarding which the Republic of Armenia and the United States signed a bilateral memorandum aimed at developing this project and investing in it.

As a result of the implementation of all of this and these projects, and I want to reaffirm that the Republic of Armenia is committed to the agreements reached and we are determined to realize these agreements as quickly as possible. Consequently, not only will communication be opened between Armenia and Azerbaijan for domestic, bilateral, and international communications, but new logistical opportunities will also be created for all member countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, including for our immediate neighbors Azerbaijan and others,” stated Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.