Aliyev names conditions for peace treaty with Armenia

PanARMENIAN.Net - Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has named two preconditions for signing a peace treaty with Yerevan – the dissolution of the OSCE Minsk Group that was tasked to help find a solution for the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, as well as Armenia’s changing of its Constitution.

"I hope that all our conditions regarding the peace treaty will also be accepted, because there is nothing out of the ordinary about them. The dissolution of the Minsk Group, the change of the constitution - without this, a peace treaty is impossible," he said in an interview with local TV channels on January 7.

"If Armenia does not need a peace treaty, then we do not need it either. We will be able to live and pursue our policy without signing it."

Baku has repeatedly rejected an Armenian proposal to remove the remaining sticking points from the text and try to settle them in the future. It has also made clear that Armenia must change its constitution before it can make peace with Azerbaijan.

On numerous occasions, Aliyev has described much of modern-day Armenia as “western Azerbaijan” and said Yerevan must ensure the safe return of ethnic Azerbaijanis who had fled it in the late 1980s. He made a similar statement on January 8 as well.