Azerbaijani state media announced on October 4 that President Ilham Aliyev had decided not to travel to Granada, Spain, to attend a dialogue with Armenian leaders on October 5, according to Reuters.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (left) shakes hands with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Azerbaijan's Nakhichevan region on September 25.
The talks, brokered by the leaders of France, Germany and European Council President Charles Michel, took place on the sidelines of a European Political Community summit to discuss the future of Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan seized control of the region after a swift military operation on September 19, forcing hundreds of thousands of ethnic Armenians to flee to neighboring countries.
According to the APA news agency, Mr. Aliyev wanted Türkiye, Azerbaijan's ally, to be represented at the meeting, but France and Germany objected. APA said that Azerbaijan sensed an anti-Russian atmosphere among the members attending the meeting. Baku was also unhappy with recent statements and actions in support of Armenia by European officials.
French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna visited Armenia on October 3 and declared support for the country's territorial integrity, and announced that she would provide defensive weapons to Yerevan.
Aliyev has not confirmed that he will not attend the meeting. Meanwhile, his ally, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has also canceled a trip to Spain for the European Political Community meeting on October 5. Bloomberg, citing sources, said Erdogan has a busy schedule ahead of the ruling party congress on October 7.
For his part, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced that he would still travel to Granada and said it was a shame that the two leaders could not sign a "landmark document" on Nagorno-Karabakh, according to AFP. Nagorno-Karabakh is internationally recognized as Azerbaijani territory but was controlled by the country's ethnic Armenian minority until the military operation in September.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have fought two wars over Nagorno-Karabakh in the past 30 years, and mediation efforts by the European Union (EU), the US and Russia have not been able to help the parties sign a peace agreement.
Senator Ben Cardin, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said on October 4 that the United States should suspend security aid to Azerbaijan after it recaptured Nagorno-Karabakh. Instead, Cardin said Washington should prioritize supporting expelled Armenians and holding Baku accountable, while taking action to ensure Azerbaijan does not seek to seize more territory.
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