South Caucasus

Armenia and Azerbaijan have issued a joint statement in which they announced tangible steps in implementing confidence-building measures between them as a step towards normalising relations between them "and to reach a peace treaty on the basis of respect for the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity." The two sides also announced a prisoner exchange. A joint sttament issued in Baku and Yerevan states that following talks between the Presidential Administration of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Office of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia, an agreement has been reached on taking tangible steps towards building confidence between two countries. Azerbaijan will release 32 Armenian military servicemen and Armenia will release 2 Azerbaijani military servicemen. The two countries will support each other's initiatives in the framework of COP. The statement adds that Armenia and Azerbaijan "will continue their discussions regarding the implementation of more confidence building measures, effective in the near future and call on the international community to support their efforts that will contribute to building mutual trust between two countries and will positively impact the entire South Caucasus region.”

Across the South Caucasus civil society organisations on Thursday (30 November) called on their governments to adhere to the Ottawa Convention that bans the use, production and sale of anti-personnel landmines. The call came during events held to mark the Day of Solidarity with the victims of landmines and other unexploded remnants of war in the South Caucasus.   In Baku, Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijan Campaign Against Landmines (AzCAL) hosted an event during which it presented its report "Landmines are the most serious obstacle preventing Azerbaijani IDPs from exercising their right to return to their homes" During the meeting those present also heard testimonials from three persons from Tovuz region and Aghdam who had suffered life changing injuries by landmines. A number of civil society organisations also spoke at the event. The guest of honour at the event was the British Ambassador to Azerbaijan, Fergus Auld. He reiterated the commitment of the British government to work to eradicate the problem of landmines globally, and in Azerbaijan and the South Caucasus in particular. Ambassador Auld said the UK government calls on the governments of the region to sign the Ottawa Convention as an expression of their commitment for a landmine free South Caucasus. In Tbilisi, the Tbilisi School for Social Research hosted an event during which the remaining problem of landmines in Georgia was discussed. Giorgi Arziani, Director of the Tbilisi School for Social Research spoke of the costs that anti-personnel landmines inflict on civilians' security and how landmines hamper the economic development of the communities that live close to the landmine fields. Two video reports were shown to participants, including one on the situation with the mine field near the Red Bridge which was followed by a presentation by Irakli Chitanava from UNDP. Speaking on line from Baku, LINKS Europe Executive Director, Dennis Sammut made a public appeal to Georgian prime minister Irakli Garibashvili to take a personal interest in the matter of the Red Bridge minefield. Dennis Sammut said that it was a shame that the area near the Red Bridge - the point where Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia are connected -  is a minefield. He called for this to be transformed into a peace park. Dennis Sammut said that the current situation could be explained in the past due to the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict, but now, with the peace process in motion, and with the prime ministers of the three countries meeting recently in Tbilisi, there should be a new beginning. Dennis Sammut called on prime minister Garibashvili to integrate the Red Bridge minefield issue in his Peaceful Caucasus initiative and make this a tangible example of the new begining. The event in Tbilisi was also addressed by Godfried Hanne, Head of the Regional Office of the EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus who spoke about the work of the European Union in support of a landmine free South Caucasus. In Yerevan, Armenia, the NGO Television station CivilNet ran a long interview on the problem of landmines in Armenia and in the wider South Caucasus with Benyamin Poghosyan. In the interview Benyamin Poghosyan urged all concerned to focus on the humanitarian aspect of demining and said that the matter should be depoliticised, and the focus turned to the victims of landmines and their families and communities.

The South Caucasus remains one of the areas most infected with contamination by landmines and other unexploded remnants of war in the world. Last year, the Regional Campaign “Landmine Free South Caucasus”, declared 30th November as a Day of Solidarity with the victims of landmines and other unexploded remnants of war in the South Caucasus. The day is not just a memorial, but a call to humanitarian action. Thousands of people have been killed or injured across the region over the last three decades. The impact of the tragedies on families and communities is high, and the mechanism to alleviate the suffering, very weak. This is not yesterday’s problem. Last year once again saw hundreds killed or injured. The impact on communities is huge and affects tens of thousands of innocent people. In 2022/2023 the campaign focused its work to awareness of the impact of landmines and other remnants of war on individuals and communities across the region. Overall, the Regional Campaign Landmine Free South Caucasus objective is to mobilise support for a landmine free South Caucasus by 2030. As we mark the Day of solidarity with the victims of landmines and other remnants of war in the South Caucasus, we call for resolute action to eradicate the problem of landmines and other unexploded remnants of war from the South Caucasus once and for all. This will require the political will of the three governments, and the support of the international community.

All transport and communication lines in the South Caucasus remain closed. This failure can largely be attributed to the shift of connectivity from a concept intended to build trust to one tied up with security arrangements in the post-2020 era. "Instead of fostering closeness between the parties, concepts that were supposed to enhance cooperation were perceived as threats to territorial integrity and sovereignty", writes Shujaat Ahmadzada in this op-ed for commonspace.eu. "One should not overlook the fact that the November 10 statement and many of its components have been fundamentally and operationally Russia-centric, implying that the Armenian-Azerbaijani disagreements have to be settled around a third party – albeit not an ordinary one but one with hegemonic ambitions."

It may appear that the primary obstacle to the signature of a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan is the different views of the sides on where to resume and finalize the process. Armenia wants to do that in Western platforms, while Azerbaijan wants to return to the Russian platform, use the 3+2 format, or have direct negotiations without any mediators. In this op-ed for commonspace.eu Benyamin Poghosyan says that "in reality, the roots of the current situation are more profound than simple geopolitical choices of venue."

This month marked the third anniversary of the ceasefire statement that was meant to end the second Karabakh war. In retrospect, it might be more appropriately considered a continuation of the first conflict of the early 1990s given that the ceasefire then was hardly implemented too, leading to a new war 26 years later. Meanwhile, hopes that Baku and Yerevan could sign a peace agreement are fading. In this op-ed for commonspace.eu Onnik James Krikorian says that "a deal was possible by the end of the year, both sides pronounced in 2022 and again throughout 2023, but that sounded as vague and sometimes disingenuous then as it does now. Instead, an uncanny sense of deja vu hangs over the process, reminiscent of earlier failures by the now defunct OSCE Minsk Group."