BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 9. We are today establishing peace in the Caucasus, which will open great opportunities, not only for our region but for the world, said President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev during a joint press conference in Washington with U.S. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan.
Statement by President Ilham Aliyev
- Thank you very much, Mr. President. First of all thank you for the invitation. It’s a big honor to be invited by the President of the United States to this historic event.
Actually, we are writing a new history in bilateral, interstate relationship between the United States and Azerbaijan. We are starting a path towards a strategic partnership. The Charter on Strategic Partnership will be elaborated over several months, and this is a historic achievement for Azerbaijan. Because being in the format of strategic partnership with the greatest country in the world is a great opportunity and also very big responsibility.
And this strategic partnership format embraces so many important areas including mutual investment, trade, energy, connectivity, transit, AI, defense sales, counterterrorism – all these areas in which we have had and hopefully will have very active cooperation in the future. It opens a lot of opportunities for Azerbaijan to continue its path of development, diversify its economy, keep unemployment low, as it is today, and to look to the future with great optimism.
Also, I am very grateful to the President for lifting the restrictions that were imposed on Azerbaijan back in 1992, just one year after Azerbaijan restored its independence. These restrictions were imposed on us only a year after independence, and after 33 years, they have been lifted today. It’s a day which will be remembered by the people of Azerbaijan with a feeling of pride and gratitude towards President Trump for his attitude towards Azerbaijan, for his vision not only for our region. We exchanged views today, and I said that within several months, he managed to put an end to conflicts in Asia, in Africa and now in the South Caucasus.
What we could not achieve for more than 30 years – we had to sacrifice lives, fight two very bad wars with a lot of casualties. Without President Trump, his team and our great friend Mr. Witkoff and his team, probably today, Armenia Azerbaijan would have been again in this endless process of negotiations.
So really, it's a historic day. We are today establishing peace in the Caucasus, which will open great opportunities not only for our region. As President Trump correctly mentioned, the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity will create new connectivity lines, lift the walls and l create connectivity opportunities for so many countries with investments, with prosperity, with stability.
You know, Azerbaijan and Armenia became independent at the same time as a result of the collapse of the Soviet Union. But at that time, we were already at war, and we lost a lot of years preoccupied with wars and occupation and bloodshed. Today is a historic day, and also because we are bringing peace. President Trump is bringing peace to Caucasus, and we are grateful for that. And I'm sure that Armenia Azerbaijan, will find courage and responsibility to reconcile, and the people will also reconcile. We will turn the page of standoff, confrontation and bloodshed and provide bright and safe future for our children.
So I'm very happy, because today we're writing the great new history. And once again, Mr. President, thank you for all what you are doing for us, for our region and for the whole world.