President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan on Friday accused Yerevan of deliberately delaying the peace deal with Azerbaijan, saying Armenia is not interested “in lasting peace in the region.”
“Armenia is deliberately delaying, while buying new weapons from France and other countries and conducting military exercises on its territory with third countries,” Aliyev said during a meeting with a group of Turkish lawmakers currently visiting Azerbaijan.
“Armenia is not interested in a peace treaty and lasting peace in the region,” he added.
In an ironic twist about the delay tactics, Aliyev also repeated his demand—precondition—for Azerbaijan to sign a peace deal, that is Armenia amending its constitution.
“Territorial claims against Azerbaijan set by the Armenian constitution must be abolished, and the constitution must be changed,” Aliyev charged.
Armenia’s Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan has accused Aliyev of deliberately delaying the process by demanding preconditions and threatening Armenia. Mirzoyan, and the foreign ministry, have repeatedly said that the issue of amendments to the Constitution are and remain Armenia’s domestic issue.
The head of Armenia’s Constitutional Reforms Council, Grigory Minasyan, announced on Thursday that a referendum of Constitutional amendments will be held in 2027, in line with a deadline set by Prime Minster Nikol Pashinyan.
Minasyan said that this timeline provides an opportunity for detailed analysis of the Constitution and allow public discourse on the matter, jointly with all experts. He added that the process cannot be done “in haste.”
During his meeting with Turkish lawmakers on Friday, Aliyev also brought up one of his other demands, which is the dissolution of the OSCE Minsk Group.
“If the conflict has ended and the Prime Minister of Armenia has expressed support for Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity, then what is the need to keep the Minsk Group?” Aliyev questioned.
“The OSCE Minsk Group and its related institutions, which have already lost their relevance, should be completely abolished,” Aliyev said.
