Armenia, Azerbaijan join Iran-hosted talks aimed at reconciliation

TEHRAN: Armenia and Azerbaijan joined talks on Monday in Tehran seeking to ease tensions between the arch foes, which soared with Baku´s lightning offensive to retake the long-disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. 

However, the same day as the meeting, Azerbaijan announced the start of joint military drills with its ally Turkiye near the border with Armenia just weeks after Baku seized Karabakh from pro-Yerevan separatists. At the meeting in the Iranian capital -- which also included foreign ministers from Turkiye, Russia and Iran -- the envoys noted a push for peace in the Caucasus.

“This meeting... can be the cornerstone of the path towards establishing peace and ending challenges in the South Caucasus with the participation of regional players and neighbours,” said Iran´s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.