Putin in Baku offers mediation for Azerbaijan-Armenia peace agreement

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on a visit to Baku Monday that Moscow was still committed to its historic role of mediating peace negotiations between Azerbaijan and Armenia, despite its Ukraine campaign.

Putin was in Azerbaijan on a two-day visit -- his first to the oil-rich country since Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022, and since Baku retook the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave in a September 2023 offensive.

Russia has for decades been a traditional mediator between the Caucasus foes but has in the last two years been bogged down by its Ukraine campaign, with Western powers playing an increasing role in arbitrating the conflict.

"It is widely known that Russia is also facing crises, first of all on the Ukrainian track," Putin said in Baku in joint remarks with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.

"However, Russia's historical involvement in the events in the South Caucasus, even during the recent years, makes it necessary for us to participate where needed by the sides, without a doubt."

Baku's campaign ended three decades of Armenian separatist rule and soured relations between Yerevan and its traditional ally Moscow, with Armenia accusing Russia of inaction and strengthening its ties with Western countries since.

"If we can do something to sign a peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia... we will be very happy to," Putin said.

The Russian leader said that after his Baku visit he will contact Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to "tell him about the results of our negotiations".

Aliyev said the security of the region largely depended on the close cooperation between Azerbaijan and Russia.

"The new situation (since September last year) opens up new opportunities for establishing a lasting peace in the South Caucasus," he said.

When Baku recaptured Karabakh in a swift offensive last September, it led to the exodus of the mountainous enclave's entire ethnic Armenian population -- more than 100,000 people.