Belgian FM on peace-brokering mission in South Caucasus

Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib embarked on a four-day trip to the South Caucasus region on Monday, focusing on pushing for peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

On Monday, the minister announced on X (formerly Twitter) that she was going to visit Yerevan (Armenia), Tbilisi (Georgia) and Baku (Azerbaijan) to “promote, on behalf of Belgium and in line with the stance of EU, lasting peace in the region” as well as “the strengthening of the bonds that unite us”.

According to Belga, she will meet with her Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan on Tuesday and with the Azeri Foreign Minister Jehyun Bayramov later. Her office did not give details on the content of the exchanges.

Tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia have been high for years, peaking in 2020 during a six-week war after which Azerbaijan took back control of the Nagorno-Karabakh landlocked region where a majority of Armenians live.

Since December, Armenia has also accused Azerbaijan of creating a humanitarian crisis by blocking access to the region.

In April, Baku announced that it had set up a first checkpoint at the entrance to the Latchine corridor (the only link between Armenia and the Nagorno-Karabakh region).

Then it “temporarily” blocked access to it in July for “security reasons”, leading Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to warn of the risk of a new war and accusing Baku of “genocide” in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

According to Yerevan, more than 120,000 people are at risk of famine, while water and electricity shortages are multiplying.

The US and the EU called on Azerbaijan to end its blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh, with Belgium’s Lahbib declaring on X earlier this month that it was “urgent to lift the blockade for humanitarian reasons”.

Belgium has good relations with both countries. It has had an embassy in Baku for many years, and it decided to open a diplomatic office in Yerevan in May – which Lahbib will inaugurate during her visit.

“On an international political level, and given the current tensions in the South Caucasus region and the Armenian-Azerbaijani peace process, it is important for Belgium to have not only an embassy in Baku but also one in Yerevan,” Lahbib said in parliament in early July.

“On a geopolitical level, the Russian aggression against Ukraine is prompting Belgium to strengthen its presence in the former Soviet space“, she added before stressing the “excellent political relations” between Armenia and Belgium.

The South Caucasus is a strategic area that is known for its gas. For example, the EU has recently strengthened its strategic and energy partnership with Azerbaijan as it is set on moving away from Russian gas.

(Nina Chabot, Anne-Sophie Gayet | EURACTIV.com)