PM Pashinyan Addresses Return of Armenian Detainees, TRIPP and Peace Process at UN

NEW YORK — Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan addressed the return of Armenian detainees held in Azerbaijan during his speech at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly.

Pashinyan said that Armenia is awaiting the return of Armenians who remain in detention in Azerbaijan as a result of the conflict.

The prime minister also spoke extensively about the ongoing peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Pashinyan emphasized that the peace established between Armenia and Azerbaijan on August 8, 2025, with the support and personal involvement of U.S. President Donald Trump, has opened new opportunities for the South Caucasus.

According to Pashinyan, Trump’s personal involvement has both practical and symbolic implications on the ground. Referring to the peace declaration, he said Armenia is determined to take all necessary steps in good faith to achieve the implementation of the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP) communications project as quickly as possible.

“The implementation of the TRIPP project is becoming a reality through tangible steps. The framework agreement on strategic cooperation concerning the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity project, signed between Armenia and the United States, will soon be submitted to the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia for ratification.

“We are now working with the U.S. government on establishing the TRIPP Development Company and signing a shareholders’ agreement.

“Accordingly, at the initial stage, Armenia will hold a 26 percent stake in the TRIPP Development Company, while the United States will hold 74 percent. The agreement stipulates that, if extended, Armenia’s stake will increase to 49 percent in the 50th year without any additional investment.

“One of the practical manifestations of the TRIPP project will be the implementation of Paragraph 3 of the Peace Declaration adopted by the president of Azerbaijan and me on August 8, 2025, and signed by the U.S. president as a witness,” Pashinyan said.

Paragraph 3 of the declaration states:

“We reaffirmed the importance of opening communications between the two countries for domestic, bilateral and international transportation, based on respect for the sovereignty, territorial integrity and jurisdiction of states, with the aim of promoting peace, stability and prosperity in the region and its neighborhood.

“These efforts will include unimpeded connectivity between the main part of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic through the territory of the Republic of Armenia, with reciprocal benefits for the Republic of Armenia in international and domestic connectivity.”

Pashinyan said the implementation of the TRIPP project would have historic significance for Armenia.

“For the first time since the early 1990s, Armenia will gain railway connectivity with Azerbaijan and, through it, with Russia, Central Asia and China. It should be noted that following the August 8, 2025 Peace Summit, Azerbaijan opened its railway to Armenia, and we now have a railway connection with Azerbaijan through Georgia.

“The implementation of the TRIPP project will establish a direct Armenia-Azerbaijan railway connection, as well as railway connectivity from Azerbaijan to Azerbaijan through Armenian territory and from Armenia to Armenia through Azerbaijani territory. Armenia currently has no railway connection between its northern and southern regions, and in practical terms such a connection is possible only through the territory of Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. Azerbaijan, in turn, has no railway connection with its Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, and such a connection is practically possible only through Armenian territory.

“In the near future, we will restore the Meghri and Yeraskh railway sections in Armenia that existed during the Soviet era and were subsequently destroyed, allowing the railway connections I have mentioned to reopen.

“This will also have enormous international significance because, alongside the construction of these railway links, we expect the Armenia-Turkey railway to reopen.

“Together with the TRIPP project, this could become one of the most significant developments in international logistics in recent decades, as it would open a new railway connection linking China, Central Asia, Turkey and the European Union.

“All of this creates another transformative opportunity for international logistics because restoring the railway connection between Armenia and Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic would also restore railway connectivity between the Persian Gulf and the Black Sea.

“This is an important point because it demonstrates why and how implementation of the TRIPP project promises substantial benefits for all countries in our region. These potential benefits can become a cornerstone of long-term stability and peace, particularly between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

“After approximately 35 years of conflict, we are now discussing, within the framework of the TRIPP project, not only an east-west railway but also the construction of pipelines, electricity transmission lines and roads. This will provide an opportunity for not only the Republic of Armenia, but the entire South Caucasus, to become a Crossroads of Peace,” Pashinyan said.

The prime minister also addressed unresolved humanitarian issues. According to Pashinyan, Armenia and Azerbaijan still need to clarify the fate of thousands of missing persons, an issue on which the two countries have agreed to cooperate.

“Armenia is ready to continue and deepen cooperation with Azerbaijan on demining. And, of course, the Republic of Armenia awaits the return of Armenians who remain in detention in Azerbaijan as a result of the conflict.

“Alongside the fact that these issues remain unresolved, another factor fueling pessimism is the occasional use of confrontational rhetoric by certain circles in Armenia and Azerbaijan, sometimes even at the official level.

“I believe that we — meaning Armenia and Azerbaijan — have achieved more than enough results that should be more valuable to us than the use of confrontational rhetoric, whether concerning history, historical and cultural monuments, or anything else,” Pashinyan said.

According to the prime minister, preserving, strengthening and institutionalizing peace should become the central focus of cooperation between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

“For two and a half years now, there have been no deaths or injuries resulting from exchanges of fire between Armenia and Azerbaijan. I believe this is the greatest value created through the cooperation of recent years.

“In the history of relations between independent Armenia and independent Azerbaijan, we have never before experienced such a period, although Armenians and Azerbaijanis have centuries of experience in peaceful coexistence.

“Our task, however, is not to restore that historical experience, but to build interstate relations on the basis of that popular experience, founded on respect for each other’s territorial integrity, sovereignty and political independence.

“Incidentally, this is precisely the language Armenia and Azerbaijan have already agreed upon and initialed in the agreement on establishing peace and interstate relations between the two countries.

“Signing and ratifying that agreement, which was initialed at the Washington Peace Summit, is the next major item on the joint Armenia-Azerbaijan agenda, and we will consistently continue our work in this direction,” Pashinyan said.