RFI: Azerbaijan seeks to balance the factor of Armenia’s orientation toward Eu

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev signed a number of economic agreements aimed at expanding Berlin’s access to Baku’s gas reserves and transit routes. As reported by RFI, the deal comes amid Germany’s efforts to diversify its energy supplies and at a time when Azerbaijan is trying to balance its orientation toward Europe with its recently renewed ties with Moscow.

Aliyev’s visit to Berlin resulted in the signing of a Joint Declaration on a Strategic Agenda for Bilateral Partners and the creation of an Azerbaijani-German Business Council.

Berlin’s interest is primarily economic in nature. Aliyev noted that Azerbaijan began supplying gas to Germany this year as the EU is phasing out imports of Russian energy resources. Merz called the South Caucasus a “key transport hub linking Europe and Asia,” hinting at the Middle Corridor, a trade route connecting the Caspian and Black seas and bypassing Russia.

Relations with Armenia were also discussed during the talks, as Azerbaijan is slowly but steadily rebuilding ties with its neighbor after decades of bitter hostility and war.

Merz congratulated Aliyev on signing a peace agreement with Armenia, calling it a “historic agreement” that offers “a new opportunity to finally overcome the protracted conflict.”

However, the text signed at the ceremony at the White House in August last year is still awaiting amendments to Armenia’s constitution demanded by Baku before a final version can be signed.

“Azerbaijan offered peace to Armenia and received a positive response,” Aliyev said, noting the German government’s role as a mediator and emphasizing that more than 40,000 tons of transit cargo had passed through Azerbaijan to Armenia, while Azerbaijani gasoline and diesel fuel “contribute to Armenia’s energy security.”

Berlin appears keen to avoid taking either side. In March last year, Steinmeier’s trip to Baku came after a two-day visit to Armenia, where he urged both sides to show “the courage to compromise.”

Meanwhile, France has openly tilted toward Yerevan, selling the country 36 Caesar howitzers for the Armenian army, as well as radar systems and armored vehicles.

Armenia, meanwhile, has maintained its frozen membership in the Russian-led CSTO alliance, while Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has ruled out a return to active participation. In February 2025, the country’s parliament voted to begin the process of joining the EU.

Baku is moving in the opposite direction. Relations with Moscow collapsed after Russian air defense systems struck an Azerbaijan Airlines plane on December 25, 2024, causing it to crash in Kazakhstan and killing 38 people.

However, on July 17, Foreign Ministers Jeyhun Bayramov and Sergey Lavrov said after talks in Moscow that relations had been “fully normalized,” direct flights were being resumed, and bilateral trade had reached $4.9 billion in 2025, making the regional map more fluid and contested than at any time since the war.