by Manishak Baghdasaryan

Today, multiple sources have said that Armenia and Azerbaijan may jointly announce their intention to pursue peace, not a treaty, during an upcoming visit to Washington, DC. According to Azerbaijani journalist Alex Raufoglu, U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to host Nikol Pashinyan and Ilham Aliyev at the White House on Friday, August 8th. According to Raufoglu, Trump will first meet with Armenian PM Pashinyan, he will then host Azerbaijan’s Aliyev. The three leaders will make a joint announcement after.

It is important to note that this information has not been confirmed by any official government sources. The Armenian Prime Minister’s Office stated that they “cannot confirm or deny” reports about Pashinyan’s visit at this time, adding that such announcements should only be considered confirmed if an official statement is issued.

At the heart of this initiative is the so-called controversial “Zangezur Corridor”: a land link through Armenia’s Syunik province that will connect mainland Azerbaijan to occupied Nakhijevan. In late July, media reports suggested that Armenia, Azerbaijan, and the U.S. had approved a memorandum handing control of the corridor to a U.S. private military contractor. The project was reportedly dubbed the “Trump Bridge.”

While Azerbaijan is demanding a corridor without Armenian control, Armenia’s position remains that any transit route must remain under Armenian sovereignty. However, growing domestic backlash and the lack of transparency in the negotiation process have raised alarm within Armenia’s political and civil society sectors, with many saying this is a forced concession disguised as diplomacy.

The Trump-brokered corridor plan proposed a 100-year lease of foreign control over the corridor, a move opposition says will institutionalize Armenia’s loss of sovereignty over Syunik for generations to come. Armenian PM Pashinyan previously condemned the idea as a breach of sovereignty but his Press Secretary, Nazeli Baghdasaryan, and his overall administration have been contradicting these views, saying there are “technical nuances” of the words used by the government.

The corridor plan fits into a broader realignment in the region: The United States is now inserting itself as a “mediator”, while, in reality, establishing direct economic and military presence in Armenia. Turkey and the EU have also shown support, eyeing strategic  and commercial benefits. Meanwhile, Trump has openly expressed his desire to win the Nobel Peace Prize, and many view this high-profile mediation as an attempt to secure a legacy-defining achievement on the world stage.
Trump recently applied a similar diplomatic approach in Southeast Asia, in the middle of the Thailand and Cambodia conflict, and now appears to be extending that strategy to the Caucasus, though questions remain about how local concerns are being addressed.