First meeting between Armenian and Azerbaijani representatives in format of Border Delimitation Commission
According to Armenian and Azerbaijani MFAs, the first meeting of Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Azerbaijan Shahin Mustafayev and Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Mher Grigoryan in the format of the Commission on Delimitation of the Azerbaijani-Armenian border on May 24, 2022, within the implementation of the agreements reached and on the basis of the two countries' relevant decrees. The parties reaffirmed their readiness to work within the Commission on delimitation and other issues.
Organisational and procedural issues of the joint activity of the commission were discussed. The parties agreed on the expediency of holding the next meetings of the Commission in different places, as well as meetings at the interstate border. Thus, they agreed to hold the second meeting in Moscow and the third in Brussels.
On 22 May, the head of the European Council, Charles Michel, made a statement to the press following the trilateral talks with the heads of Armenia and Azerbaijan in Brussels. “The discussion was frank and productive. We have considered the whole range of issues. We discussed humanitarian issues in detail, including demining, efforts to free detainees and resolve the fate of the missing,” he said.
Moreover, recently, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova stated that Russia is hoping that actual work on the delimitation of the Armenian-Azerbaijani boundary will begin soon. “We have been arguing for the establishment of a commission to delimit the Armenian-Azerbaijani boundary and subsequent delineation with Russia's advising help,” Zakharova said at a press conference. Zakharova also addressed the event on May 7 in which Azerbaijani forces opened fire on the Sotk mine in Armenia, harming one of its workers. She stated that the delimitation commission should be established as soon as possible to avoid further border incidents between Armenia and Azerbaijan. "We are certain that the commission's work on the delimitation of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border should be initiated as soon as possible to avoid any border incidents," she stated. Within this framework, Zakharova added, confidence-building measures might be established, such as the formation of contact groups to maintain a stable situation in border regions.