U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken had separate telephone conversations with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, discussing "the historic possibility of peace in the region".

This was stated in two separate but nearly identical messages from State Department Speaker Ned Price following the conversations.

Blinken urged the sides to continue bilateral dialogue and welcomed the recent meeting of Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers in Tbilisi.

He offered U.S. assistance in "facilitating regional transportation and communication links."

Blinken also reiterated U.S. support for productive EU-mediated discussions.

He added that the United States has been co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group since 1994 and is willing to cooperate bilaterally and with like-minded people to help Armenia and Azerbaijan achieve long-term, comprehensive peace.

To recall, talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan recently took place in Tbilisi for the first time since 2020 without mediators.

They took place against the backdrop of an unannounced visit to Yerevan by CIA chief William Burns, who met with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and the head of the Armenian Security Council.