The White House celebrated a peace deal between Armenia and Azerbaijan on Friday, bringing the two countries’ leaders to Washington for a summit led by President Donald Trump.
“I look forward to hosting the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, and the Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, at the White House for a Historic Peace Summit,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “These two Nations have been at War for many years, resulting in the deaths of thousands of people.”
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Trump will meet with the leaders of both nations, which are located in the South Caucasus region at the border between eastern Europe and western Asia, this afternoon at the White House to sign a peace agreement.
“Many Leaders have tried to end the War, with no success, until now, thanks to ‘TRUMP,'” the president boasted on his social media site. “My Administration has been engaged with both sides for quite some time.”
As with other Trump deals, the agreement has a trade element, and he says it will benefit the people of both nations and the United States.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have been in conflict for decades, and Trump hopes to end it through increased economic cooperation, both with each other and with the West. Transportation corridors through both countries have been closed due to the conflict since the 1990s, and reopening them could provide better opportunities to circumvent trading with Russia and Iran, Trump administration officials told reporters on a Friday morning call.
The reopened corridor would be named the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity.
“The two neighbors have been in conflict for decades, over 35 years, with countless lives lost and generations scarred,” White House deputy press secretary Anna Kelly said. “While many have tried, including [former President] Joe Biden, only President Trump, the peacemaker in chief, was able to successfully bring Armenia and Azerbaijan together to agree to a historic peace.”
The trade corridor could eventually feature oil and gas lines, a rail line, and fiber optic cables, according to the Associated Press. It is planned to be developed by private companies. Trump special envoy Steve Witkoff visited the region earlier this year to coordinate the deal.
Tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia date back to at least the 1915 massacre of 1.5 million Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Turks, and continue today due to ethnic and religious differences among their populations. Most Armenians are Christian, whereas most Azerbaijanis are Muslim.
Still, Trump’s team is confident those differences can be worked out, with trade serving as a bridge.
“By locking in this path to peace, we are unlocking the great potential of the South Caucasus region in trade, transit, and energy flows,” Kelly said. “The president has yet again shown that we can move beyond long-standing conflicts of the past and move towards the future.”
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When asked by a reporter if the agreement furthered the case that Trump should win the Nobel Peace Prize, an administration official answered, “I don’t think Trump needs outside affirmation,” and referenced a social media post saying it should be called the Trump Peace Prize as allies insist he has done more to advance peace than any Nobel Prize winner.
“What this will do for American businesses, and frankly, for energy resources across Europe, will be enormously powerful,” an administration official said. “The losers here are China, Russia, and Iran. The winners here are the West.”