BRUSSELS: European Council President Charles Michel spoke of progress in talks between the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan in Brussels on Sunday, adding that “momentum should be maintained” towards a final peace deal.

Michel hosted talks with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev amid heightened tensions on their common border over control of the contested enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh. Michel had already met with Pashinyan on Saturday evening and with Aliyev on Sunday morning.

The EU officials assured, at the end of the meetings, that the two leaders “shared a common willingness for a south Caucasus at peace,” describing their exchanges as “frank, open and result oriented”.

Sunday’s meeting between the Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders was the fifth of its kind under European mediation.

“Following the recent positive talks held in the United States on a peace treaty, the momentum should be maintained to take decisive steps towards the signing of a comprehensive peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan,” Michel said afterwards.

The two leaders met in Brussels after fresh clashes on the border between the two Caucasus countries.

On Friday, the Armenian government announced that one Armenian soldier had been killed and two others wounded by Azerbaijani forces.

On Thursday, an Azerbaijani soldier was killed and four Armenian soldiers wounded in other clashes.

Published in Dawn, May 15th, 2023