Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan (L), and President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev (R), shake hands during a Board of Peace meeting at the U.S. Institute of Peace, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026, in Washington.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Oct. 15 he hoped to sign and ratify a peace treaty with Azerbaijan before 2031, as the arch-foes pursue normalization after decades of territorial conflict.
The Caucasus neighbors fought two wars over Azerbaijan’s Armenian-populated Karabakh region, which Baku recaptured in a lightning offensive in 2023, prompting the exodus of its entire ethnic Armenian population.
A lasting settlement could reopen transport routes across the strategic region, where Russia, Türkiye and Iran compete for influence.
“Signing a peace treaty with Azerbaijan is one of the most important issues for the government and for me personally,” Pashinyan told a televised cabinet meeting.
“I have set myself a task, a specific timetable, to resolve the issue before 2031,” he said.
“I see such a possibility. Otherwise, I would not raise this issue.”
The countries initialed a peace agreement at a White House summit hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump in August 2025 but the treaty has yet to be formally signed and ratified.
Azerbaijan has demanded changes to Armenia’s constitution before signing, saying its reference to a declaration of independence calling for unification with Karabakh amounts to a territorial claim.
The constitutional changes sought by Baku would require approval in a national referendum.
Yerevan rejects that interpretation, arguing that the agreed treaty text addresses concerns about territorial claims.
The draft commits both countries to respect each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, renounce territorial claims and establish diplomatic relations.
