Azerbaijan freed 17 Armenian prisoners of war on Tuesday as the two ex-Soviet countries relaunched peace talks following recent border clashes.
The move comes after U.S. mediation and highlights the growing Western engagement in the volatile Caucasus region, where Russia – distracted by its war in Ukraine – is visibly losing influence after decades of domination.
Last month, at least 286 people were killed on both sides before a U.S.-brokered truce ended the worst clashes since the neighbors' 2020 war.
Baku and Yerevan fought two wars – in 2020 and in the 1990s – over the Karabakh region, which had been under Armenian occupation for decades.
"I highly appreciate the efforts of the United States (in) assisting to return our 17 POW," Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian said Tuesday on Twitter.
He expressed hope for more "progress in resolving both humanitarian issues and establishing peace in the region" with international mediation.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who is traveling in Latin America, initiated a three-way telephone conversation Tuesday with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov.
Blinken hailed the release of the prisoners and "reiterated our commitment to helping Armenia and Azerbaijan resolve issues peacefully," State Department spokesperson Ned Price said.
Blinken also "expressed our appreciation for the positive steps Armenia and Azerbaijan are taking toward reaching a sustainable peace agreement."
The Azerbaijani and Armenian ministers met jointly with Blinken on Sept. 20 on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, and the two held talks again together on Sunday in Geneva.
The Geneva talks followed an EU-mediated meeting on Aug. 31 in Brussels between Pashinian and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.
With Moscow increasingly isolated on the world stage following its February invasion of Ukraine, the U.S. and the European Union have taken a leading role in mediating the Armenia-Azerbaijan normalization process.
However, recent footage of what could be termed war crimes might obstruct the road to peace.
Azerbaijani Presidential aide Hikmet Hajiyev tweeted on Tuesday that a mass grave of tortured and killed Azerbaijani militaries by Armenia during the first war was identified in Edilli village.
“Edilli was used as a concentration camp for Azerbaijani hostages by Armenia. Around 4000 Azerbaijani militaries/civilians remain missing. Armenia refuses to provide mass grave locations.”
