August 9, 2025 | Washington / Baku / Yerevan
The Washington summit between Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, and U.S. President Donald Trump has been hailed in Baku as a historic turning point in both U.S.-Azerbaijani relations and the Armenia–Azerbaijan peace process. The talks produced several key documents, including a declaration of intent to sign a comprehensive peace agreement and an accord to launch “strategic relations” between Baku and Washington.
From Yerevan’s perspective, the meeting marked “a significant step toward long-term and comprehensive peace,” according to Areg Kochinyan, head of Armenia’s Center for Security Policy Studies. Speaking to Vesti.Az, he noted that several long-stalled issues had moved forward and pointed to the so-called “Trump Road” project — a U.S.-Armenian consortium that will manage a network of transport and energy infrastructure, including railways, highways, gas pipelines, and power lines.
Kochinyan stressed that the agreements establish the principle of reciprocity, including “unimpeded connection between mainland Azerbaijan and Nakhchivan through Armenian territory, with mutual benefits for both Armenia’s domestic and international communications.” He added that the deal effectively closes the chapter on political rhetoric about “extraterritorial corridors” across Armenia, replacing it with a framework for reopening transport links between the two neighbors under Armenian sovereignty and jurisdiction.
On the U.S.-Azerbaijan strategic partnership, Kochinyan argued that shared Western partnerships could help both countries stabilize relations:
“The more common partners Armenia and Azerbaijan have — especially Western ones balancing Russian influence — the greater the chances for durable peace.”
A separate U.S.-Armenia security cooperation agreement was also signed. While Kochinyan cautioned against calling Washington a new guarantor of Armenia’s security or territorial integrity, he said the U.S. role in Armenia’s security architecture had “noticeably strengthened.”
Predictably, he added, Moscow and Tehran view the growing U.S. footprint in the South Caucasus with suspicion. Iran’s reaction, so far, has been restrained, echoing concerns voiced during the 2023–2024 deployment of the EU Monitoring Mission to Armenia — concerns that Yerevan eventually eased. Russia’s position, in his view, is less ambiguous:
“If Armenia and Azerbaijan move toward peace and independent statehood, Russia will obstruct it. Both countries must learn to coexist with their former imperial center while building their own states and peaceful ties with neighbors.”
Despite the breakthroughs, Aliyev has underlined that a peace treaty hinges on Armenia amending its constitution, which currently contains territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Speaking after the summit, he said, “The sooner this happens, the sooner we will sign the peace agreement.”
Kochinyan called the constitutional issue a domestic Armenian matter, noting that discussion of a new constitution — rather than amendments — is already under way, with adoption likely in 2026 or 2027. He advised minimizing Azerbaijani public pressure on the topic:
“The less Baku raises this issue publicly, the better for the negotiation process — and for Armenia, Azerbaijan, and the region as a whole.”
