U.S. Deputy Secretary of State for Political Affairs Allison Hooker met with Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov.
According to the information released by the Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs on November 19, the current state of bilateral cooperation between the two countries was discussed during the meeting. The sides also exchanged views on prospects for development, the Azerbaijan–Armenia peace process, as well as regional and global security issues.
“The agreements reached during the historic Washington meeting on August 8 were recalled with satisfaction, and the importance of joint efforts toward the development of strategic partnership between the two countries was emphasized. It was noted that we are interested in accelerating work on the ‘Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity,’ which will be implemented by the United States to ensure unhindered connectivity between the main part of Azerbaijan and its Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement said.
A statement from the U.S. Embassy in Azerbaijan noted that during the meeting, the U.S. Deputy Secretary of State reaffirmed Washington’s support for the peace process in the South Caucasus.
Relations between Azerbaijan and the United States have normalized after Donald Trump was elected president again. During the Biden Administration, the ties between the two countries were not considered “warm.” At the time, official Baku openly expressed dissatisfaction with Washington’s stance on regional developments, and additionally cited the Biden Administration’s increased criticism on human rights issues as a cause of strained relations. Washington’s statements regarding political prisoners and civil society caused discontent in Baku, with Azerbaijan stating that these matters were being unnecessarily politicized within the bilateral dialogue.
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State for Political Affairs Allison Hooker also met with the President’s Assistant and Head of the Foreign Policy Department of the Presidential Administration, Hikmet Hajiyev.
“Our discussions covered a wide range of issues, including progress on the Armenia–Azerbaijan peace agenda and the implementation of regional connectivity initiatives. We also exchanged views on key regional and global developments and reaffirmed the spirit of strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and the United States,” the President’s Assistant wrote on his “X” page.
The Deputy Secretary’s visit to the region began on November 15. Before arriving in Azerbaijan, she had visited Armenia.
During her visit to Armenia, it was announced that a joint working group had begun operating to implement the “Trump Corridor.” The working group will be led by Sonata Coulter, Deputy Assistant to the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State.
During her meetings in Yerevan, including with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, the U.S. official presented details of the working group.
According to her, U.S.–Armenia cooperation, as well as progress in the normalization of Armenia–Azerbaijan and Armenia–Turkey relations, “creates new prospects for opening the South Caucasus as an important trade route.”
