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The 22 May Brussels meeting between President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan through the mediation of European Council President Charles Michel showed with stunning clarity the grandiosity of the Azerbaijani leader, Azernews reports.

Meeting Charles Michel ahead of the meeting with the Armenian prime minister, the Azerbaijani leader filled him in on Baku's five-point peace package, based on international law, and stressed that these principles were to play a pivotal role in drafting a peace treaty. Moreover, Ilham Aliyev expressed the hope that the process of drafting the document would be accelerated.

The meaning of this message is obvious and it clearly indicates Baku’s readiness to take concrete steps towards peace. This is what Yerevan is so stubbornly resisting, citing a bunch of very different, mostly completely ridiculous, "arguments" in its "justification". Of course, Michel is well-aware of the truth that is on the side of Azerbaijan, and the arguments, cited by President Ilham Aliyev, are traditionally impeccable.

Recalling that Azerbaijan determined the composition of the working group, as well as the composition of the National Commission for Border Delimitation, Aliyev sent a message that it is the Armenian side that is hindering the adoption of specific decisions agreed upon during the two previous high-level meetings.

The five-hour meeting resulted in another brilliant triumph for the Azerbaijani president: almost everything he talked about during the tete-a-tete meeting was accepted.

Most importantly, there was no mention of Nagorno-Karabakh, and even more so of "Artsakh", but Karabakh in the final statement of the President of the EU Council.

Just like in the two previous meetings, there was not a mention of the so-called “status” of Karabakh by Michel. The only point that was referred to was the importance of considering the issue of the rights and security of the ethnic Armenian population in Karabakh. However, Baku has always spoken of its readiness to give them exactly the same rights that all citizens of the country enjoy. So, here, too, lies the unity of Baku and Brussels's positions.

Moreover, Michel’s final statement noted that the demining of the liberated territories and the fate of the missing people were discussed, which is exactly what Azerbaijan has always sought. Aliyev repeatedly demanded the Armenian leadership to hand over the minefield maps, in the absence of which, it is difficult to clear mines from the liberated territories, which leads to new tragic deaths and injuries among civilians. He also demanded clarification on the fate of over 4,000 missing Azerbaijani servicemen in the first Karabakh war, which was also reflected in the statement.

During the meeting, it was also decided to hold the first joint meeting of the delimitation commissions on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border in the near future. The commission will be in charge of defining the boundaries and finding best ways to ensure stability in the region. The need to implement this point was also mentioned by official Baku.

Finally, it was decided to continue work on opening communications, including the implementation of the Zangazur corridor, which is another factor that Azerbaijan has insisted upon and Armenia has so actively opposed.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has repeatedly stated that the country needs the Zangazur corridor not only for the citizens to gain access to the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic but also for the railway communication between Armenia and Iran through it. He also mentioned the benefits the corridor will give Armenia.

Taking into account his role in the historical victory of the 44-day war, which ended with the liberation of the historical Shusha and all previously occupied territories of Azerbaijan, as well as the political and economic leadership of the country in the region, allows one to call the Azerbaijani leader one of the brightest political figures of our time.

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