Azerbaijan sets condition for mending ties with Armenia

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has said that the opening of a transport link between mainland Azerbaijan and its exclave of Nakhchivan, which Baku calls the "Zangezur corridor," is a condition for starting normalisation of relations with Armenia. Aliyev said Armenia assumed this obligation under the Karabakh armistice agreement signed with Russia's mediation on 10 November 2020.

"We have been patient so far. But our patience has its limits. The Second Karabakh War showed what happens when we run out of patience. In other words, we are giving the Armenian leadership a chance to implement all the provisions of the 10 November declaration and act responsibly," the president said.

He said that Azerbaijan would complete the construction of its part of the "Zangezur corridor" within the next two years. Aliyev said the section of the transport link passing through Armenian territory was 40 km, which could take around a year to complete. "We are waiting for this to happen," he said.

Aliyev also said that Azerbaijan was positive about the prospects of normalisation of relations between Turkey and Armenia. But he said Armenia had rejected the three-plus-three platform (Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia plus Iran, Turkey, Russia) suggested by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Both sides have stated their position on the Zangezur corridor. Armenia notes that the implementation of this project is not important and that such an article is not in the declaration, while the Azerbaijani side believes that the article "Restoration of transport infrastructure" is related to the Zangezur corridor.

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