Twitter / @Emmanuel Macron
News from the NOS•today, 04:43•Modified today, 06:49
There will be a civilian mission from the European Union in the border area between Armenia and Azerbaijan. It states this in a joint statement that was distributed after negotiations between the two countries, led by French President Macron and President Michel of the European Council of Government Leaders, according to the AFP news agency.
The mission will start in October and will last up to two months. It is not clear how many people participate. The mission aims to help maintain peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan by mediating in the definition of borders.
The fighting between the two countries killed hundreds of people last month, until a US-mediated ceasefire went into effect. Last night, Armenian Prime Minister Pashinian and Azerbaijani President Aliyev negotiated the issue in Prague. The conversations took place in the shadow of the first meeting of the European Political Communityalso a Macron initiative.
Alma Ata
According to the joint statement, both countries confirmed during the talks that they respect each other’s borders, as enshrined in Alma Ata’s 1991 declaration, following the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Since then, however, the countries have fought several times for territory: not only for the borders between them, but also for the status of the Nagorno-Karabakh region, which is located in Azerbaijan but is claimed by both countries. The struggle for that region claimed the lives of around 6,500 people in 2020, then ended after Russian mediation.
