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Akbar Novruz

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Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has referred to the village of Tigranashen in Armenia's Ararat Province by its Azerbaijani toponym, Kyarki, while discussing the delimitation of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.

Speaking at a briefing, Pashinyan said the border should be established in a manner that avoids creating difficulties for residents living on either side. He recalled that Armenia and Azerbaijan had agreed to base the delimitation process on the 1991 Alma-Ata Declaration and the maps in force at the time.

According to Pashinyan, those maps show Artsvashen as Armenian territory, while Kyarki, Barkhudarlu and Yukhari Askipara are not part of Armenia.

"According to these maps, Artsvashen is Armenian territory, while Kyarki, Barkhudarlu and Yukhari Askipara are not," Pashinyan said.

He noted, however, that there are other sections where the maps do not correspond to the situation on the ground, including areas around Jermuk, other parts of Vayots Dzor and Tavush.

Pashinyan said these issues would have to be resolved but ruled out a military solution.

"This is a chapter of the past that has been closed," he said, stressing that a solution should be found that is acceptable to both sides and takes into account the interests of people living in the affected areas.

The Armenian prime minister also addressed the situation of people displaced from Artsvashen, an Armenian village that came under Azerbaijani control following the first Karabakh war.

Pashinyan said he had met with Artsvashen residents several times and that not all displaced people want to return to the village.

He added that Armenia and Azerbaijan have not yet reached formal agreements on how to address the issue of the affected territories and displaced populations.

According to Pashinyan, the matter should ultimately be resolved peacefully and without conflict, as part of the broader process of Armenian-Azerbaijani border delimitation.

Armenia plans to formalize peace with Azerbaijan and normalize ties with Türkiye

The Armenian government plans to formalize peace with Azerbaijan, establish diplomatic relations with Türkiye and deepen strategic ties with the European Union and the United States under its 2026-2031 government programme.

The programme was presented by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan at a government meeting, outlining Yerevan’s foreign-policy priorities for the coming five years.

According to the programme, the Armenian government will continue the delimitation of the Armenia-Azerbaijan border while working toward the institutionalisation of peace between the two countries. This is expected to include the signing of a peace treaty and other legal agreements, as well as expanding contacts between the two countries’ civil society and business communities.

Yerevan also plans to pursue the normalisation of relations with Türkiye, including the establishment of diplomatic relations and the opening of the land border.

The government intends to open at least two modern border checkpoints with Türkiye. One of them, the Margara checkpoint in Armenia’s Armavir Province, has already been prepared on the Armenian side.

The programme also envisages the relaunch of energy infrastructure as part of the broader process of Armenian-Turkish normalisation.

At the same time, Armenia plans to develop strategic relations with the European Union, the United States, Iran and Georgia, while maintaining multilateral relations with Russia.