Armenia’s Minister of Environment Hambardzum Matevosyan addressed the question of Azerbaijan’s potential participation in COP17, clarifying that all member states of the convention—196 in total—are invited to the event.

“Armenia is hosting and presiding over COP17, but this is not only our event, it is a global one. The UN is also an inviting party. All countries have already been informed about the dates and the event itself. While formal invitations haven’t yet been sent, they will be soon, and each country’s environment ministry or designated authority has already been notified,” Matevosyan stated, as reported by 1lurer.am.

He added that they expect a high-level turnout, including ministers and senior officials.

“As for which countries will confirm participation and which won’t, it’s too early to say. The invitations are sent jointly with the UN. This is both our event and a global one. We are inviting all 196 countries.

One of the event’s themes is working together on shared environmental challenges. No country should be excluded from this process. We are ready to host all delegations,” the minister concluded.

The COP17 biodiversity conference is scheduled to take place in Yerevan in October 2026.