Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev described peace with Armenia as fragile and in need of consolidation while addressing the seventh summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in Baku on October 15. The summit brought together leaders and senior officials from across Asia and the Middle East. 

In his speech, Aliyev stated that Azerbaijan and Armenia had been living in peace for slightly more than a year, but warned that the situation remainedvulnerable. “The peace is still fragile, and it needs to be protected and consolidated,” he said. He presented Azerbaijan’s account of the decades-long conflict, criticizing previous Armenian governments and international organizations for their handling of the dispute. Aliyev argued that the failure to implement international resolutions had prolonged the conflict and maintained that Azerbaijan had offered peace followingthe restoration of its control over Nagorno-Karabakh in September 2023. His remarks placed the current peace process within Azerbaijan’s broader argument that regional stability dependson respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Aliyev used the summit and the surrounding diplomatic programme for a series of bilateral meetings. On October 14, he met Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to review their strategic partnership and allied relations, including trade, energy, investment, construction, transport and logistics. He also met Tajik President Emomali Rahmon to discuss bilateral ties and multilateral cooperation. In a separate meetingwith Israeli President Isaac Herzog, the two sides highlighted bilateral relations and regional and international developments, while Herzog commended Azerbaijan’s CICA chairmanship. Aliyev also received Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, with discussions covering the strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and China, the Belt and Road Initiative, the Middle Corridor, Chinese investment and renewable energy.

Other meetings on October 14 included Aliyev’s reception of Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, who conveyed the greetings of King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and considered prospects for expanding bilateral cooperation. Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva also met Vietnamese Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan, reaffirming the strategic partnership and discussing bilateral issues. The Azerbaijani president received Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath, with the CICA summit providing an opportunity to discuss bilateral engagement, and met Tajikistan’s Rahmon later that evening.

On October 15, Aliyev met Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Qatar’sEmir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. The meeting with Tokayev coincided with the inauguration of the Trans-Caspian Fiber-Optic Cable Line, a roughly 380-kilometre subsea connection between Sumgayit in Azerbaijan and Aktau in Kazakhstan with a stated capacity exceeding 400 terabits per second. In talks with Qatar’s emir, Aliyev touched on bilateral relations and prospects for cooperation, including the work of the intergovernmental commission. The summit also produced a conspicuous diplomatic moment when representatives of more than ten countries left the hall as Herzog began his speech.The delegations included Türkiye, Pakistan, Kuwait, Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia and Iran. Türkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan was among the senior officials attending the summit.After the walkout, Fidan was received by Aliyev, and he also met Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Bayramov. Their meetings focused on recent developments in bilateral relations. Bayramov also met Wang Yi, discussing the Armenia-Azerbaijan normalization process, economic cooperation, investment, energy and transport, with particular attentionto the Middle Corridor. On October 15, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov hosted a trilateral meeting with Uzbek Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov and Turkmen Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov on the sidelines of the CICA summit. The ministersexamined expanding cooperation among the three countries, covering trade, energy,transport and transit connectivity.

Other Azerbaijani officials also held bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the summit. On October 14, Prime Minister Ali Asadov met Lao President Thongloun Sisoulith to consider strengthening political and economic relations, including cooperation in trade, transport and logistics, energy, humanitarian affairs and mine clearance. Asadov met Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, with talks covering trade, investment, energy, transport, public services, education and tourism. Speaker of the Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova met Sisoulith on October13, during the first officialvisit by a Lao head of state to Azerbaijan, and held talks with Belarusian House of Representatives Chairman Igor Sergeyenko on October 15.

The summit concluded with the adoption of the Baku Declaration and a statement on occupational safety and health, Laos’s admission as a full CICA member, and the extension of Azerbaijan’s chairmanship for 2026-2028. Ambassador Sultan Hajiyev was appointed CICA Secretary-General for 2026-2030, while Cambodia’s ratification completed the process for bringing the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the CICA Secretariat into force. Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry identified these outcomes as a renewed commitment to multilateralism, regional connectivity, peace and security across Asia. The summit’s adopted documents set out the institutional decisions and areas of cooperation agreed by participating states.