Michel: Certain progress has been made, and the Brussels talks are resuming

The Brussels talks are resuming. President of the European
Council Charles Michel said this in an interview to the Radio Liberty
Azerbaijani service.

Michel noted that the EU is working toward the conclusion of
a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan in the near future.

Referring to the possible conclusion of a peace treaty by
the end of the year, he said: “What matters to me is the result. We have worked
closely with Azerbaijan and Armenia to restore mutual trust. As you know, there
have been major problems between the sides, both in terms of history and
relations. However, we have made certain progress, and I am fairly optimistic.
We are determined to work toward the conclusion of a peace treaty between the
sides,” Michel said.

He referred to the need to ensure the return of Artsakh
Armenians and to provide them with security guarantees, and added that the
peace treaty should be based on border demarcation results. He also noted that
the improvement of transport links will have a positive effect on the economic
development of the region.

“Talks on different models of transport links are underway.
A model should be found, which will not violate the territorial integrity of
Armenia,” Michel said.

He noted that the Azerbaijani foreign minister and the high
representative of the EU for foreign affairs and security policy met a few days
ago. A meeting with the Armenian foreign minister is expected in the future.

“We are very active behind the scenes. We work hard to make
progress both with Azerbaijan and Armenia. The joint statement of Azerbaijan
and Armenia was made partly because we had been engaged in this process, helped
them in this regard, and gave them certain ideas to express their positions on
the issues mentioned in the statement. We continue to work on further steps
towards the conclusion of a peace treaty,” Michel said, adding that for them,
the establishment of peace is more important than a local issue.