Senior officials from Armenia and Azerbaijan used the Doha Forum to highlight a shift toward aligned narratives and continued commitment to implementing the Washington peace agreement, stressing both governments’ intention to consolidate a lasting settlement in the South Caucasus according to APA News.

Armen Grigoryan, secretary of Armenia’s Security Council, said during a panel that positions once in open contradiction are now largely similar. He noted that while some differences remain, Yerevan expects closer cooperation to improve long-term prospects. Azerbaijan’s presidential aide Hikmet Hajiyev, who appeared alongside Grigoryan on a panel titled “Armenia-Azerbaijan durable peace: the Washington agreement and a shared future”, said discussions focused on implementation of the Washington commitments, the economic dividends of peace, transport links and confidence-building. He reiterated Baku’s intention to transform the South Caucasus into a zone of lasting stability and prosperity.

Speaking separately to Al Jazeera, Hajiyev said Baku is pursuing a “just peace” that creates new regional realities and a new status quo. He argued that past peace deals elsewhere failed because signatories retreated into a “comfort zone” after signing, whereas Armenia and Azerbaijan are actively resisting that pattern, remaining in regular contact and working to implement agreed steps.

Grigoryan, also addressing the forum, called the Washington agreement a “major, historic success” and said Armenia is now discussing how to strengthen peace rather than how to manage conflict. Increasing economic activity with regional partners is a priority, he added.

Hajiyev further told participants that preparing societies for peace is essential. He said the aim is an irreversible settlement that reshapes the region’s geopolitical landscape and that trust between governments is already emerging. Building trust between societies, he said, will be more complex but is indispensable. Azerbaijan, he noted, seeks to sign peace “not only with the Armenian government but with the Armenian people”, ensuring the agreement benefits future generations.

He also described the Washington agreement as transformative, comparing its potential impact on the South Caucasus to the Camp David framework in the Middle East, while stressing contextual differences. Peace, he said, has been Azerbaijan’s objective for three decades.

Hajiyev emphasised that US President Donald Trump played a “fundamental” role in the breakthrough. He said that once Washington became directly involved, the parties gained confidence that the United States was fully committed to the international peace agenda. Intensive contacts from February, parallel US engagement with both sides, and a decisive Abu Dhabi meeting that laid the groundwork for the Washington summit helped consolidate the final agreement.