Trump to host Armenia, Azerbaijan leaders at White House for peace talks
U.S. President Donald Trump will host Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev at the White House in a bid to advance a long-delayed peace deal between the two countries, the Washington Post reported on Aug. 6.
The meeting, expected to take place on Aug. 8, comes as part of Trump's broader push to assert the U.S. role in resolving global conflicts.
According to the Armenian government, Pashinyan will visit Washington on Aug. 7 and 8 to attend a trilateral meeting with Trump and Aliyev. The talks are aimed at promoting "peace, prosperity, and economic cooperation in the region," Yerevan said.
A source told the Washington Post that a peace agreement between the two countries might be announced as a result of the meeting.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have remained at odds since gaining independence from the Soviet Union over 30 years ago, with repeated outbreaks of violence over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, de jure Azerbaijani territory that was de facto ruled by ethnic Armenian authorities.
In 2020 and again in 2023, Azerbaijan launched military operations that culminated in full control over the territory, prompting nearly all of the 100,000 ethnic Armenians to flee.
Both sides announced a draft peace agreement in March, though a final signing date has remained elusive. In July, leaders from both countries held talks in the United Arab Emirates, but no breakthrough was reached.
The talks in Washington mark a significant diplomatic moment for Trump, who has touted his ability to end wars and negotiate peace deals. On July 29, he claimed he had already "stopped about five wars," without naming them.
After Russia did not move to prevent the 2023 Azerbaijani offensive despite the presence of its peacekeepers, Armenia has moved to deepen ties with Western nations and other international partners.
Yerevan's shift in foreign policy has increasingly brought it into Washington's orbit, while also heightening tensions with Moscow.
