Armenia and Azerbaijan have signed a U.S.-brokered peace deal, ending decades of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
The Washington accord marks a major geopolitical shift, with Russia absent from the process.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have signed a landmark peace agreement in Washington, D.C., formally ending nearly 40 years of hostilities over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. The accord, signed on Friday, August 8, 2025, was mediated by U.S. President Donald Trump and marks a dramatic geopolitical shift in the South Caucasus, with Russia notably absent from the process.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev hailed the deal as “writing a great new history,” while Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan described it as “opening a chapter of peace” for both nations. Trump called the agreement a “historic success,” noting that previous international mediators, including the EU and Russia, had failed to resolve the decades-long dispute.
The breakthrough follows Azerbaijan’s September 2023 military campaign, which restored Baku’s control over Karabakh. Over the past year, the two countries engaged in direct bilateral talks that paved the way for the U.S.-hosted signing ceremony.
A key provision of the accord is the creation of the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, a transit corridor linking mainland Azerbaijan to its Nakhchivan exclave through Armenian territory. Operating under Armenian law, the corridor is expected to bolster trade, attract investment, and strengthen regional connectivity while respecting Armenia’s sovereignty.
The deal also dissolves the OSCE Minsk Group, established in 1992 to mediate the conflict, signaling a pivot by both countries toward Western engagement and away from Russian-led diplomacy.
Moscow has reacted sharply, accusing Pashinyan of “selling out” Armenian sovereignty and reviving disinformation narratives about alleged U.S.-run bioweapons labs in the region. Relations between Baku and Moscow have also soured, with Azerbaijan pursuing legal action over claims that a Russian air defense system caused the crash of an Azerbaijani passenger jet over Grozny in December 2024.
The European Union welcomed the accord, calling it “a path to lasting, sustainable peace” and urging swift implementation of all agreed-upon measures.
With the signing, Armenia and Azerbaijan have not only ended a decades-old war but also shifted the regional balance of power, positioning the U.S., rather than Russia, at the center of South Caucasus peace efforts.
