The United States Vice President JD Vance has made history by becoming the first sitting US Vice President to visit Armenia. This visit is a significant development as the Trump administration seeks to advance a US-brokered deal aimed at ending a decades-long conflict with Azerbaijan. But here's where it gets controversial... The deal, signed by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, aims to reopen key transportation routes with Azerbaijan. However, the text of the treaty has been initialed by foreign ministers, indicating preliminary approval, but the leaders have yet to sign the treaty and parliaments have yet to ratify it. This has sparked debate about the progress and future of the peace treaty. The visit also coincides with Vance's family spending four days at the Winter Olympics in Milan, and his plans to travel to Azerbaijan on Tuesday. Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev are both on President Donald Trump’s new Board of Peace, which was originally envisioned to oversee the Gaza ceasefire plan but has since expanded in size and ambition. The deal with the two former Soviet republics calls for the creation of a major transit corridor dubbed the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity. This land bridge had been a sticking point in resolving a conflict that lasted for nearly four decades over control of the Karabakh region, known internationally as Nagorno-Karabakh. The region had been under the control of ethnic Armenian forces backed by Armenia since 1994. A six-week war in 2020 resulted in Azerbaijan regaining control of parts of the region and the surrounding areas. In September 2023, Azerbaijan launched a blitz that forced the separatist authorities to capitulate. After Azerbaijan regained full control of Karabakh, most of its 120,000 Armenian residents fled to Armenia. This visit by Vance is a significant step towards peace, but it also raises questions about the progress and future of the peace treaty. Do you think this visit will lead to a successful peace treaty? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
