U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday announced that Armenia and Azerbaijan had agreed to permanent peace, unveiling the deal at a White House summit with the leaders of the two South Caucasus nations long locked in conflict.
“Armenia and Azerbaijan are committing to stop all fighting forever, open up commerce, travel and diplomatic relations, and respect each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Trump said.
He also said the U.S. would lift restrictions on military cooperation with Azerbaijan.
Trump met separately with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan at the White House, beginning at 2:30 p.m. (1830 GMT), with a trilateral meeting set for 4:15 p.m. (2015 GMT), the White House said.
The agreement includes exclusive U.S. development rights to a strategic transit corridor through the South Caucasus, dubbed the "Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity." U.S. officials said the agreement was hammered out during repeated visits to the region and would provide a basis for working toward a full normalization between the countries.
