Politics
Armenia, Azerbaijan agree to groundbreaking peace agreement
U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday announced that Armenia and Azerbaijan had agreed to permanent peace, unveiling the deal at a White House summit with the leaders of the two South Caucasus nations long locked in conflict.
“Armenia and Azerbaijan are committing to stop all fighting forever, open up commerce, travel and diplomatic relations, and respect each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Trump said.
He also said the U.S. would lift restrictions on military cooperation with Azerbaijan.
Trump met separately with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan at the White House, beginning at 2:30 p.m. (1830 GMT), with a trilateral meeting set for 4:15 p.m. (2015 GMT), the White House said.
The agreement includes exclusive U.S. development rights to a strategic transit corridor through the South Caucasus, dubbed the “Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity.” U.S. officials said the agreement was hammered out during repeated visits to the region and would provide a basis for working toward a full normalization between the countries.
“We anticipate significant infrastructure development by American companies. They’re very anxious to go into these two countries, and they’re going to spend a lot of money, a lot of money, which will economically benefit all three of our nations,” he said. “This is incredibly positive news for the future of the entire region.”
Trump said that as part of the agreement, the US would be lifting restrictions on US defense cooperation with Azerbaijan.
For his part, Aliyev hailed the “historic day” being marked by the signing.
“We are today establishing peace in the Caucasus, which will open great opportunities, not only for our region,” he said. “I’m sure that Armenia and Azerbaijan will find courage and responsibility to reconcile, and also the people will reconcile. We will turn the page of standoff confrontation, and bloodshed, and provide bright and safe future for our children.”
Pashinyan said the leaders were ushering in a “new era based on the full respect for the sovereignty and territorial in the integrity of each other.”
“Today’s declarations which President Trump personally will sign as witness gives confidence and assurance that we’re opening a chapter of peace, prosperity, security and economic cooperation in the South Caucasus,” he said.
In a statement, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also welcomed the “historic peace deal.”
“President Trump brought these parties together and brokered a deal that ends decades of conflict,” he said.
“This is an opportunity for both countries to move forward and focus on unlocking the economic potential of the South Caucasus region, which will bring trade deals and prosperity for the American people and both Armenia and Azerbaijan,” he added.
The White House earlier described the TRIPP as a “multimodal transit area” linking Azerbaijan and the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic to the west via Armenian territory.
Previous proposals to resolve the conflict included a route between Nakhchivan and mainland Azerbaijan known as the Zangezur Corridor.
Negotiations over who will operate the route are expected to begin in the middle of next week, and a senior administration official said that so far, nine potential operators have expressed interest, including three American firms.
Working groups are expected to be launched immediately after the deal is inked to iron out the details of the “roadmap” over the course of the coming months.
The leaders also signed a joint letter requesting the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe dissolve the Minsk Group, a mediation organization co-chaired by the US, Russia, and France to resolve the conflict between the nations.
Azerbaijan’s crushing victory in a six-week war with Armenia saw Baku recapture swathes of its lands, which Armenian forces had controlled for three decades. In September, Azerbaijan launched a lightning offensive to drive away remnants of the separatists. The one-day offensive concluded with another victory for Azerbaijan and separatist leaders either turned themselves in or were captured by Azerbaijani forces days later. Azerbaijan and Armenia pursue peace talks through international mediation but talks have so far failed to produce a breakthrough.
U.S. officials highlighted the opportunities presented for both countries and U.S. investors through the creation of the new transit corridor, which will allow greater exports of energy and other resources.
“What’s going to happen here with the Trump route is, this isn’t charity. This is a highly investable entity,” said one senior administration official, adding that at least nine companies had in recent days expressed interest in operating the transit corridor, including three U.S. firms.
Under a carefully negotiated section of the documents the leaders will sign on Friday, Armenia plans to award the U.S. exclusive special development rights for an extended period on a transit corridor that will be named the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, and known by the acronym TRIPP, the officials told Reuters this week.
Trump would sign a directive to set up a negotiating team to work out details for how to operate the corridor, with initial commercial negotiations to begin next week, one of the officials said.
“The losers here are China, Russia and Iran. The winners here are the West,” one of the officials said. “Both countries that have been in conflict for 35 years… are looking and talking about full peace with each other tomorrow.”
“It’s being done, not through force, but through commercial partnership… with these two countries,” the official said. “The joint declaration that we’re going to see signed today is the first-ever peace declaration signed bilaterally by the two countries since the end of the Cold War.”
Trump has tried to present himself as a global peacemaker in the first months of his second term. The White House credits him with brokering a cease-fire between Cambodia and Thailand and sealing peace deals between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo and Pakistan and India. He is also intensifying efforts to end Russia’s war in Ukraine, eyeing a possible meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin as early as next week. Senior administration officials told reporters the agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan marked the first end to several frozen conflicts on Russia’s periphery since the end of the Cold War and said it would send a powerful signal to the entire region.
“This isn’t just about Armenia. It’s not just about Azerbaijan. It’s about the entire region, and they know that that region is going to be safer and more prosperous with President Trump,” a senior administration official said. A peace deal could transform the South Caucasus, an energy-producing region neighboring Russia, Europe, Türkiye and Iran that is criss-crossed by oil and gas pipelines but riven by closed borders and longstanding ethnic conflicts.
Türkiye on Friday called on the international community to prevent Israel’s plans to “take control” of Gaza City under a plan proposed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“Every step taken by the fundamentalist Netanyahu government to continue its genocide and expand its occupation deals a heavy blow to global peace and security,” the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Calling Israel’s move an attempt to render Gaza uninhabitable and forcibly displace Palestinians from their land, the ministry said Türkiye “strongly condemns” Israel’s decision.
It stressed that lasting peace in the region can only be achieved through respect for international law, prioritization of diplomacy, and protection of fundamental human rights.
Under the plan to “defeat” Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli army “will prepare to take control of Gaza City,” Netanyahu’s office said Friday.
“Israel must immediately halt its war plans, agree to a cease-fire and begin negotiations for a two-state solution,” the Turkish statement said.
It called on the international community to “carry out its responsibility to prevent this plan’s implementation” and urged the U.N. Security Council to take binding decisions against Israel.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan was set to travel to Egypt on Saturday for a series of talks with senior officials on Israel’s plans. Fidan will “evaluate joint efforts to end the genocide in Gaza and allow the unhindered access of humanitarian aid into Gaza, emphasize that the occupying Israel’s actions targeting a two-state solution and its latest steps toward the annexation of Gaza are the biggest obstacle to regional peace and stability,” his office said Friday.
Before the decision, Netanyahu said Israel planned to take full control of Gaza but did not intend to govern it.
He told U.S. network Fox News on Thursday that the military would seize complete control of the Gaza Strip, noting that Israel did not want “to keep” the territory, which it occupied in 1967 but withdrew troops and settlers from in 2005.
Netanyahu said Israel wanted a “security perimeter” and to hand the Palestinian territory to “Arab forces that will govern it properly without threatening us.”
“That’s not possible with Hamas,” he added.
His office on Friday said a majority of the security cabinet had adopted “five principles,” including demilitarization of the territory and “the establishment of an alternative civil administration that is neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority.”
An unspecified “alternative plan” was rejected by the cabinet, it added.
The Israeli army said last month that it controlled 75% of the Gaza Strip, mainly from its positions in the territory along the border.
An expanded Israeli offensive in Gaza could see ground troops operate in densely populated areas where hostages are believed to be held, Israeli media have reported.
‘War of extermination’
Nations around the world expressed concern over Israeli plans to wrest control of Gaza City, saying that it would only worsen the conflict and lead to more bloodshed. U.N. human rights chief Volker Turk said the plan must be “immediately halted.” He said that Israel should instead allow “the full, unfettered flow of humanitarian aid” and Palestinian armed groups must unconditionally release hostages.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the plan was “wrong” and added that “this action will do nothing to bring an end to this conflict or to help secure the release of the hostages,” but would “only bring more bloodshed.”
“Gaza belongs to the Palestinian people and is an inseparable part of Palestinian territory,” a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson told Agence France-Presse (AFP) in a message. “The correct way to ease the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and to secure the release of hostages is an immediate cease-fire,” they added.
Germany will halt the export of military equipment to Israel, which could be used in the Gaza Strip, Chancellor Friedrich Merz said.
Merz said it was “increasingly difficult to understand” how the Israeli military plan would help achieve legitimate aims and added: “Under these circumstances, the German government will not authorize any exports of military equipment that could be used in the Gaza Strip until further notice.”
Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said: “We firmly condemn the decision of the Israeli government to escalate the military occupation of Gaza. It will only cause more destruction and suffering.”
He added that “a permanent cease-fire, the immediate and massive entry of humanitarian aid, and the release of all hostages are urgently needed.”
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry condemned Israel’s decision to occupy the Gaza Strip, saying it revealed the true nature of its war, “an unjustified campaign against Palestinian civilians.”
“This decision reveals that the Israeli war was never defensive; it has always been a war of extermination and forced displacement against the people of Gaza,” the ministry said, warning of the “certain death” of civilians remaining in the strip.
Israel has been facing mounting outrage over its destructive war on Gaza, where more than 61,200 people have been killed, mostly women and children, since October 2023. The military campaign has devastated the enclave, which is facing famine.
Last November, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for its war on the enclave.
Several border crossings between the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) and the Greek Cypriot administration in the divided capital Lefkoşa were shut down Friday after Greek Cypriot motorcyclists staged demonstrations near the Metehan crossing.
The “Isaak–Solomou Remembrance Initiative,” made up of Greek Cypriot biker groups, rallied on the Greek Cypriot side of the Metehan checkpoint to mark the anniversaries of Tasos Isaak, who was killed on Aug. 8, 1996, while attempting to illegally enter TRNC territory, and Solomos Solomou, who was shot dead on Aug. 14, 1996, after trying to remove a Turkish flag in the Derinya area.
The protests halted traffic through the border, causing long queues of vehicles on both sides. TRNC and Greek Cypriot police deployed heavy security at the sites.
Reports said some Greek Cypriot bikers also planned gatherings Friday evening at the Ledra Palace and Lokmacı crossings.
The incidents recall violent unrest in August 1996, when Greek Cypriot-led biker convoys, joined by participants from Greece and several European countries, stormed the border into TRNC territory at Derinya. Isaak died during clashes on Aug. 8, while days later, Solomou was killed after ignoring warnings, crossing into TRNC territory, and attempting to pull down a Turkish flag.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Thursday reaffirmed Ankara’s unwavering support for Syria in its fight against terrorist groups and its southern neighbor’s reconstruction, emphasizing that Türkiye is ready to deepen cooperation on security, reconstruction, and regional stability.
Speaking after his meeting with Syria’s interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa in Damascus, Fidan said that Türkiye remains committed to standing by the Syrian people and supporting their legitimate aspirations and national will.
“In our discussions, we focused particularly on security issues,” Fidan said in a statement on social media. “We addressed both internal and external threats to Syria’s sovereignty and political unity. As Türkiye, we will continue to support Syria’s efforts against terrorist organizations.”
He also noted that Türkiye is prepared to provide assistance to the Syrian government in managing and securing camps in northeastern Syria—an area of ongoing concern due to the presence of foreign fighters and extremist elements. “We once again underlined our readiness to support the Syrian government in taking on responsibilities regarding the management and security of camps in the northeast,” he added.
Türkiye has long expressed concern about the presence of the terrorist PKK-affiliated groups in northeastern Syria and maintains that no lasting peace can be achieved without eliminating these threats.
While the SDF and Damascus announced a merger agreement in March, Turkish officials say the terms remain unfulfilled and warn of ongoing instability in the region. The issue was among those addressed during the Damascus talks.
Fidan’s visit comes amid rising regional tensions, including Israeli airstrikes on Syrian territory and sectarian clashes in Sweida province. Türkiye has condemned foreign interventions and called for respect for Syria’s territorial integrity.
The visit marks Fidan’s third trip to Damascus since the change in Syria’s leadership late last year. He said each visit has allowed him to witness firsthand the progress being made across various sectors in the country.
During the talks, both sides also addressed Israel’s recent attacks on Syrian territory. “We discussed Israel’s activities that are targeting Syria,” Fidan said, adding that such actions continue to destabilize the region. “Israel pursues a policy of regional destabilization. The international community, especially the U.S. and European countries, must not allow these policies to continue. It is a shared responsibility.”
He emphasized that the Syrian government is working to make the country safer, more stable, and prosperous, while also facing multiple challenges simultaneously. Fidan called on the international community to step up support for Syria’s reconstruction, saying that meaningful engagement is necessary to help the Syrian people seize a historic opportunity for a better future.
“In our talks with Mr. Sharaa today, we had the opportunity to address numerous issues such as trade, investment, transportation, and energy,” Fidan said.
Under the leadership of the two countries’ presidents, “we are determined to deepen cooperation between Türkiye and Syria in every field,” he added.
Türkiye’s support includes cooperation on infrastructure, border security, energy, and capacity building for state institutions. As part of this, gas deliveries from Azerbaijan recently began flowing into Syria via Türkiye’s Kilis province, helping to address the country’s acute electricity shortages.
The two sides also reaffirmed their commitment to mutual coordination against common threats, particularly the PKK-linked terrorist elements in northern Syria, which Türkiye considers a major obstacle to lasting peace.
“Our struggle will continue until security is fully restored in Syria and our region,” Fidan said, concluding that Türkiye would remain a reliable partner to the Syrian people in their pursuit of peace and stability.
Turkish lawmakers convened Friday for the second meeting of what has been dubbed the “National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Committee” overseeing the terror-free Türkiye initiative.
The 51-member committee, comprised of legislators from most major parties, is charged with proposing and supervising legal and political reforms following the PKK terrorist group’s decision to disband and lay down arms, ending a four-decade-long terror campaign that claimed over 40,000 lives.
Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş, speaking ahead of the closed-door session, described the initiative as a “historic responsibility” and emphasized the importance of cross-party cooperation in turning the page on conflict.
“We are at a point where we must meet the expectations of our nation by promoting peace and unity,” Kurtulmuş said. “This committee reflects a collective commitment to move forward from an era dominated by violence toward one centered on democracy and reconciliation.”
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, Defense Minister Yaşar Güler, and National Intelligence Organization (MIT) Director Ibrahim Kalın attended the meeting to brief lawmakers on the security and intelligence dimensions of the process.
The initiative, launched late last year, aims to remove terrorism from Türkiye’s domestic agenda and bolster democratic cohesion. During the first meeting, members reached initial decisions through unanimous votes, a consensus that Kurtulmuş praised as a model for continued dialogue.
The current session also addressed a proposal to finalize the committee’s composition, with discussions on filling previously unallocated seats, including those originally designated for the Good Party (IP), which refused to partake in the process.
Meanwhile, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) is preparing a nationwide public outreach campaign to explain the scope and goals of the initiative.
AK Party Deputy Chair Ahmet Büyükgümüş said the process would be presented across all 81 provinces as part of the ongoing “Türkiye Century” meetings.
“We aim to engage with all segments of society, emphasizing that a future free from terrorism is essential for sustainable peace and development,” Büyükgümüş said during a televised interview.
Officials have reiterated that the success of the terror-free Türkiye initiative depends not only on security and legal reforms but also on broad-based political will and public support.
Kurtulmuş added that any agreement reached within the committee would need to reflect shared values and be implemented with transparency and consensus.
“Türkiye has a real opportunity to build lasting peace,” he said. “The unity shown here will be key to achieving that goal.”
As the terror-free Türkiye initiative gains momentum with the establishment of a new parliamentary committee to tackle the matter, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan urged the public to trust the state about the process.
There is no room for bargaining, negotiation, concessions or secret attempts in the terror-free Türkiye process, Erdoğan said in a letter to the families of martyrs killed by the PKK terrorist group and veterans of the counterterrorism fight.
In the letter made public on Thursday, the president emphasized that every inch of the land is steeped in the blood of martyrs and veterans, saying the peace, security and pride Türkiye enjoys today is owed above all to their sacrifice and protecting their legacy is the state’s foremost duty. “I particularly request and implore you to be certain that there has been no room for bargaining, negotiation, concessions, secret and servile initiatives at any point in this process, and there will be no room for such in the future,” Erdoğan wrote.
“No step has been taken, nor will be taken, that would torment the precious souls of our martyrs or hurt the families of our martyrs and our veterans,” he added. Once the goals of a terror-free country and the region are achieved, a brand new chapter will be opened for the country, Erdogan said, adding: “Our thousand-year-old brotherhood will reach a new stage; and the seeds of discord sown among us will be uprooted and cast away forever.”
Erdoğan also sent a letter to all citizens on the goals of a terror-free Türkiye. He said they continue to work tirelessly for a strong and great Türkiye, with the awareness that they carry the responsibility of each and every citizen on their shoulders. He said over the past 23 years, through the investments that were made, and the projects, reforms, services, and regulations that were implemented, Türkiye has been elevated to a respected position both in its region and on the global stage. He emphasized that despite all the obstacles placed before them, they have joined forces with the nation to strengthen democracy, expand rights and freedoms, eliminate tutelage structures, and establish the sovereignty of the national will across all state institutions.
He said that while they are uncompromisingly combating all forms of terrorism, they are taking all necessary steps to ensure that 86 million citizens live in peace, tranquility and brotherhood. “Together with our nation, we are determined to break the bloody chain that has prevented our country from achieving its goals for half a century. God willing, we will eventually reach the goal of a terror-free Türkiye and a terror-free region,” he said.
“Rest assured, we know exactly what we are doing and are acting with strategic intelligence, utmost care and sensitivity. Every step we take is calculated meticulously,” the president said.
“There is no room in our efforts for a terror-free Türkiye for any give-and-take process, any bargaining or any steps that would jeopardize our independence and future, and there never will be,” he added. “We have never allowed, and will never allow, any attempt that would hurt the noble souls of our martyrs, upset our veterans, or sadden and shame the families of our fallen heroes.”
The terror-free Türkiye initiative launched by Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli had its first tangible progress in February when the PKK’s jailed ringleader, Abdullah Öcalan, accepted Bahçeli’s call and urged the group to lay down its weapons. In May, the PKK announced it would dissolve itself. Last month, some 30 PKK members, including a senior leader, burned their weapons in a ceremony in northern Iraq. Although symbolic, the gesture marked the first time that the group had laid down arms in its campaign of violence for more than four decades. The PKK has previously announced so-called unilateral truces but has never entirely given up its ambitions.
The initiative was preceded by calls from Bahçeli and Erdoğan to “reinforce the home front at a time of regional tensions and Israel’s expansionism.” Elimination of the PKK threat will bolster Türkiye’s role as a regional power and reinforce its economy by reducing defense expenditures utilized to fight the PKK for decades. More importantly, it will be a key stage in putting the so-called “Kurdish question” to rest. Since its foundation and first attacks in the 1980s, the PKK has exploited the Kurdish community, claiming to fight for their right to self-determination. State policies simply ignoring Kurds’ rights, such as education in Kurdish, further fueled the PKK’s violent campaign. The state stepped up counterterrorism efforts in the 1990s, but most of them backfired as controversial abductions and killings of people in the southeast, where the PKK was most active, played into the hands of the PKK’s propaganda of oppression of Kurds by the state.
Earlier this week, the National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Committee, led by Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş, held its first meeting to start weighing the next steps in the initiative. On Friday, it will hold a second meeting and is expected to hear from top officials, including Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, Defense Minister Yaşar Güler and National Intelligence Organization (MIT) Director Ibrahim Kalın. The committee has historic importance and represents the first formal framework for such an attempt to end terrorism. Although it will not enact laws to endorse the initiative, its work will involve recommendations that may guide Parliament in drafting new laws on the matter.
Speaking at an event in the northern province of Samsun on Thursday, Kurtulmuş echoed Erdoğan’s remarks and said the parliamentary process regarding the initiative was never “a process of negotiation.”
“It will determine the next steps in the initiative in light of the new situation that emerged after terrorist group’s decision of dissolution. In other words, it will be a reassessment of new developments in the initiative,” he said.
Kurtulmuş, who said at the first meeting of the committee that they would preserve the pride of Turks and the dignity of Kurds, told reporters on Thursday that they would respect the memory of martyrs.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Thursday praised Senegal’s firm stance against Israeli oppression in Gaza, describing the West African country’s solidarity with the Palestinian people as a model for the international community.
Speaking during a joint press conference with Senegalese Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko in Ankara, Erdoğan said he discussed the ongoing Israeli assault with Prime Minister Sonko, reaffirming Türkiye’s admiration for Senegal’s principled position.
“We have always welcomed Senegal’s brave and resolute stance against Israeli oppression. Their unwavering solidarity with the Palestinian people sets an example for many countries,” Erdoğan stated.
He highlighted Senegal’s longstanding support for Palestine in international forums, noting that the country has chaired the U.N. Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People since 1975.
“Senegal has not turned its back on the Palestinian people. They have stood by us in the initiatives we’ve launched at the United Nations. As two Muslim brotherly nations sharing common values, our voice on regional and global platforms is stronger than ever,” Erdoğan said.
The Turkish president concluded with a firm message on Gaza: “Our struggle will continue until the genocide in Gaza ends and those who condemn innocent children to starvation and death are held accountable. The perpetrators will be brought to justice, both before the law and in the eyes of history, for the skeletal bodies of those innocent children.”
Erdoğan expressed satisfaction with the growing interest of African nations in Turkish defense products. “We are pleased with our African brothers’ increasing interest in Türkiye’s defense industry. We hope to further strengthen our cooperation in this field in the upcoming period,” he said.
Thanking Senegalese authorities for their support in Türkiye’s fight against the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ), Erdoğan emphasized the deep-rooted ties between Türkiye and the African continent. “Let me underline this clearly: With its young population, dynamism, wealth, and yet-to-be-fully-discovered potential, Africa is the shining star of this century. No country with a global vision can ignore Africa or turn its back on this magnificent continent,” he said.
Erdoğan rejected the notion that Türkiye’s engagement with Africa is recent or opportunistic. “We are not a country that has just discovered the African continent. Our ties with Africa go back to the 10th century. For Türkiye, strengthening relations with its African brothers is both natural and the right policy,” he noted.
Criticizing orientalist attitudes and dismissive rhetoric toward Africa, Erdoğan said, “Anyone who criticizes Türkiye-Africa cooperation is attempting to confine our country to shallow waters. We reject arrogant, condescending, and orientalist approaches toward the African continent. Regardless of what the main opposition says, we will continue strengthening our bonds of friendship and brotherhood with African nations.”
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