Erdogan calls Armenia-Azerbaijan peace deal historic

PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described the agreement reached between Armenia and Azerbaijan in the United States as a historic step toward lasting peace.

He also welcomed what he called “the lifting of sanctions against Azerbaijan,” APA reported. The reference was to Section 907 of the U.S. Freedom Support Act, which had prohibited U.S. military assistance to Azerbaijan and whose repeal was announced on August 8 during a meeting between the presidents of the United States and Azerbaijan.

Erdogan said he spoke by phone with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on August 9, stressing that Turkey would always stand by Azerbaijan.

He recalled that he also held a phone conversation with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, during which they discussed unblocking regional transport links and the conditions for opening the Armenia-Turkey border.

On August 8, a trilateral meeting was held at the White House between Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, U.S. President Donald Trump, and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. The leaders signed a joint declaration on the results of the Washington talks.

In the presence of the leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan, and the United States, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov initialed the “Agreement on the Establishment of Peace and Interstate Relations between the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Azerbaijan.”