Historic Agreement Signed at White House Summit
U.S. President Donald Trump welcomed Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to the White House on Friday for the signing of a peace framework aimed at ending decades of hostility. The agreement outlines a roadmap to normalize relations between the two countries and includes provisions for developing a strategic transit corridor across Armenia.
The South Caucasus region, situated between Russia, Europe, Turkey and Iran, has long been a focal point for geopolitical tensions. The conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan dates back to the late 1980s, when the Nagorno-Karabakh region, an area with a majority ethnic-Armenian population, sought to break away from Azerbaijan. Both nations gained independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, but the dispute over the region persisted, leading to multiple clashes and stalled negotiations.
Exclusive U.S. Rights to TRIPP Corridor
As part of the agreement signed in Washington, Armenia has agreed to grant the United States exclusive development rights to a new transit route called the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, or TRIPP. This corridor will link Azerbaijan’s mainland to its exclave, Nakhchivan, which borders Turkey. The route will be governed under Armenian law, but the U.S. will sublease the land to a consortium responsible for building and operating the infrastructure.
Officials involved in the negotiations described the move as a commercial strategy to stabilize the region and prevent future conflict. The corridor is expected to serve both economic and strategic purposes, enhancing trade connectivity across the South Caucasus. The agreement follows months of diplomatic engagement, beginning with a visit by U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and continued through several rounds of negotiations.
Minsk Group to Be Dissolved
In addition to the peace framework and the TRIPP corridor agreement, Armenia and Azerbaijan signed documents requesting the dissolution of the Minsk Group. Formed in 1992 and co-chaired by the U.S., France and Russia, the group was established to mediate the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh. U.S. officials indicated that the new agreement renders the group’s role obsolete, as bilateral and U.S.-led negotiations have now taken precedence.
The deal is expected to have broader geopolitical implications. U.S. officials believe it could open the door for Azerbaijan to join the Abraham Accords, a series of normalization agreements between Israel and several Muslim-majority countries initiated during Trump’s first term. The agreement could signal a shift in regional alignments and strengthen U.S. influence in the Caucasus.
Part of Trump’s Broader Diplomatic Campaign
The peace summit comes amid a broader diplomatic push by the Trump administration. The White House has recently credited Trump with helping to broker ceasefires and agreements between Cambodia and Thailand, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Pakistan and India. However, progress has been limited on ending major conflicts such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the ongoing war in Gaza.
The Armenia-Azerbaijan summit coincided with a deadline set by Trump for Russian President Vladimir Putin to make concessions in Ukraine or face additional U.S. sanctions. While outcomes on that front remain uncertain, the agreement signed in Washington underscores Trump’s efforts to position himself as a global peacemaker in the early stages of his second term.
