President Donald Trump hosted a historic peace summit at the White House on Friday, where Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev shook hands and signed a groundbreaking agreement to end nearly four decades of conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh region. The deal, a significant foreign policy win for Trump, opens key transportation routes and boosts U.S. influence in the South Caucasus, capitalizing on Russia’s waning regional clout.
The agreement establishes the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, a transit corridor connecting Azerbaijan to its Nakhchivan exclave through Armenian territory, a long-standing sticking point in peace talks. Trump, who called the naming “a great honor” but insisted he didn’t request it, said the corridor would foster regional connectivity. A senior U.S. official noted that Armenians proposed the name, and negotiations for its development, including rail, oil, gas, and fiber optic lines, are set to begin next week with interest from at least nine developers.
Pashinyan hailed the deal as a “significant milestone,” while Aliyev said it marks a “path toward strategic partnership.” Both leaders praised Trump’s mediation, with Aliyev calling it a “miracle” achieved in six months and nominating him for a Nobel Peace Prize, a goal Trump openly covets. “Thirty-five years they fought, and now they’re friends,” Trump said, expressing confidence in lasting peace.
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The agreement includes bilateral U.S. deals with both nations to enhance cooperation in energy, technology, and trade, aiming to unlock the South Caucasus’s economic potential. It also calls for dissolving the Minsk Group, a Russia, France, and U.S.-led mediation effort deemed obsolete by the White House.
The conflict, rooted in disputes over Nagorno-Karabakh, an Armenian-populated region within Azerbaijan, fueled wars in the 1980s and 2020, with Azerbaijan’s 2023 offensive reclaiming the area and displacing 100,000 Armenians. Russia’s failure to intervene in 2023, distracted by its Ukraine invasion, weakened its regional influence, allowing the U.S. to step in. Armenia’s shift toward Western alliances and Azerbaijan’s defiance of Moscow further paved the way for the deal.
White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly called the agreement a “roadmap” for a cooperative future, respecting Armenia’s sovereignty while ensuring connectivity. Critics, like the Armenian National Committee of America, argue it rewards Azerbaijan’s aggression, but both leaders vowed to honor the deal, with Aliyev insisting there’s “no suspicion” of backtracking.
Trump’s summit adds to his 2025 peace efforts, including deals between Congo and Rwanda, India and Pakistan, and Cambodia and Thailand, though Ukraine and Gaza remain unresolved. With plans to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on August 15 to discuss Ukraine, Trump continues to position himself as a global peacemaker.
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