19 Armenians arrive in Azerbaijan as fourth ‘Bridge of Peace’ meeting begins

This is the fourth meeting between civil society representatives from the two countries. Armenians have travelled to Azerbaijan for the second time.

Unlike the visit organized in November 2025, they arrived by land this time, not by air. They crossed the demarcated Tavush–Kazakh section of the border and completed border and passport control procedures there.

Azerbaijanis travelled to Armenia via the same route in February this year. Observers described it as a “symbolic step”.

The initiative’s work on the Armenian side is coordinated by the analytical center Armenian Council. Its president, Areg Kochinyan, has repeatedly said that meetings held in Armenia and Azerbaijan should be seen as “attempts to lift the iron curtain”.

Armenians involved in the “Bridge of Peace” project view the initiative as an additional platform for direct dialogue.

They believe regular contacts can make a significant contribution to building mutual trust, expanding professional cooperation and gradually normalizing Armenian-Azerbaijani relations.

Below is the information available so far.

What is known about the meeting’s agenda?

According to Armenian Council, dialogue between civil society representatives from Armenia and Azerbaijan follows the peace agenda adopted at the Washington summit on 8 August 2025.

The center says the two-day round tables will cover the following issues:

• the current state of the peace process,
• actions carried out by participants of the “Bridge of Peace” initiative in their countries and their results,
• the situation in the region.

“Separate sessions will focus on efforts to promote peace within societies and to increase trust at the next stages of the peace process,” the centre said.

The analytical center also stressed that the “Bridge of Peace” initiative continues to foster dialogue and direct interaction between civil society representatives from the two countries.

ContextThe first meeting between civil society representatives from Armenia and Azerbaijan took place on 21–22 October 2025 in Yerevan.

A month later, on 21–22 November, Armenians travelled to Baku. At that time, Armenia’s government allocated about 17.5 million drams (around $20,000) to organize charter flights between Yerevan and Baku.

After the second meeting, the sides agreed to continue working contacts and mutual visits. The initiative then received the name “Bridge of Peace”.

Initially, five from each country took part in the initiative. In 2026, organizers expanded the number of participants.

On 13–14 February 2026, 20 from the Armenian side and 19 from the Azerbaijani side took part in the third conference of the “Bridge of Peace” initiative. The event took place in the town of Tsaghkadzor in Armenia’s Kotayk region.

From that point, Naira Martikyan, editor and head of JAMnews’ Armenian office, also joined the initiative. She is currently in Azerbaijan as well.

The agenda for civil society representatives from the two countries covers a wide range of issues related to the current stage and development of Armenian-Azerbaijani relations. These include the signing of a peace agreement and the opening of communications.

As part of the initiative, the participants also hold meetings with senior officials.

During the trip to Baku in autumn 2025, Armenians met Hikmet Hajiyev, head of the foreign policy department of Azerbaijan’s presidential administration.

Azerbaijanis, during their visit to Armenia, met Deputy Foreign Minister Vahan Kostanyan and Secretary of the Security Council Armen Grigoryan.