The Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia Armen Grigoryan Delivered a Speech at the 13th Meeting of the Secretaries of the Security Councils of the CIS Member States

05 / 11 / 2025

On November 5, Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia Armen Grigoryan participated and delivered a speech at the 13th meeting of the Secretaries of the Security Councils of the CIS member states held in Moscow.

Below is the text of his address:

“Dear colleagues,

Honorable Secretaries of the Security Councils,

Ladies and gentlemen,

First of all, allow me to express my gratitude to the Russian side, and in particular to Sergey Kuzhugetovich, for organizing this important session at a high level, aimed at discussing fundamental issues related to the security, stability, and future development of our region and the entire CIS area.

For more than three decades, the Commonwealth of Independent States has served as an important platform for dialogue, cooperation, and mutual assistance among our countries. Over these years, the CIS has played a significant role in strengthening mutual understanding, coordinating efforts in the field of security, and developing economic and humanitarian cooperation. In the context of modern challenges and a rapidly changing external environment, our regions face the tasks of ensuring stability, strengthening trust, and promoting mutually beneficial cooperation.

In this regard, meetings of the Secretaries of the Security Councils of the CIS member states provide an opportunity to develop strategic approaches aimed at protecting the interests of our peoples and ensuring the development of our states. For Armenia, the ongoing dialogue within the CIS has special importance, as it provides a valuable platform for discussing issues of security, interconnectivity, and sustainable development. This forum enables us to elaborate common mechanisms aimed at strengthening peace and trust, as well as addressing challenges that require collective approaches and mutual understanding.

The South Caucasus region is undoubtedly undergoing a period of significant transformation—political, infrastructural, and conceptual. I would like to particularly emphasize the historic event that took place on August 8, 2025, at the White House, where a meeting was held between the Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan, the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, and the President of the United States Donald Trump.

As a result of the Washington Agreement, peace has been established in the South Caucasus, and we are now working on the institutionalization of peace with Azerbaijan. One of the key components of institutionalization is the signing and ratification of a “Peace Treaty” between the two countries. Another important element is the unblocking of communications, which will create economic interdependence in the region and, in turn, contribute to the strengthening of peace. The signing of a joint declaration confirming the commitment of Armenia and Azerbaijan to the normalization of relations and to peace became an important milestone on the path toward our long-awaited peace.

Once again, we reaffirmed our commitment to the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Alma-Ata Declaration of 1991, which serves as the founding document of the CIS, has also played a crucial role in shaping the foundation of the ongoing processes. On this basis, we continue to build our cooperation. It is important to emphasize that, even in the current context, we must continue to rely on these fundamental principles, as Armenia and Azerbaijan do—by respecting each other’s territorial integrity on the basis of the Alma-Ata Declaration.

Today, as the South Caucasus gradually frees itself from the heavy legacy of military conflicts and transitions from a logic of confrontation of interests to a logic of cooperation, new horizons for peaceful and stable development are opening.
I would like to especially highlight the agreements reached within the framework of the Washington Accord on the opening of communications, as well as the TRIPP program — “Trump’s Route for International Peace and Prosperity.”

Armenia is now actively discussing the details of the TRIPP program with the United States, and in the near future it will be possible to move toward practical implementation. This project is unique in scale and significance, as it aims to create conditions where transport and communication routes will be used not as instruments of competition, but as an environment of cooperation and mutual prosperity. We see in this step not only positive dynamics in the field of infrastructure but also in the development of humanitarian ties and mutual trust.

One of the most important components of this process is the unblocking of transport and communication routes — not merely an infrastructural issue, but a strategic step toward ensuring sustainable and long-term security. This is particularly important because Armenia and neighboring countries have great development potential, and the unblocking of communications gives us the opportunity to achieve more than just the improvement of transport connections. We see that, in this new phase, one of the most essential factors is inclusiveness of all parties.

Within the framework of the TRIPP program, we strive to create a genuine environment of cooperation and mutual benefit. The program aims to build connections not only between Armenia and Azerbaijan but also with other CIS countries, ensuring the integration of Armenian transport routes into broader networks, including within the Eurasian space. This opens new opportunities for trade, logistics, and human mobility while strengthening interdependence — an important factor for ensuring security.

Following the signing of the August 8 Agreement, efforts have been made to enhance contacts between the civil societies of Armenia and Azerbaijan. For example, on October 21–22, a delegation of Azerbaijani civil society representatives visited Yerevan, with the aim of activating interaction between the two societies. We are convinced that such exchange visits should continue and expand to include new groups, which will help preserve and strengthen peace.

Thus, the unblocking of communications and initiatives such as the TRIPP program, the development of human connections, the activation of dialogue, and the institutionalization of peace are the key elements that make stability irreversible and form the foundation for the prosperity of the entire region.

We remain open to dialogue, ready to work in the spirit of mutual respect, and aspire for our cooperation not only to produce concrete results but also to serve as an example for other regions that still have to walk a similar path.

I am confident that today’s session will be an important step toward creating a more peaceful, interconnected, and secure region that will serve the well-being of all the peoples and states represented in the CIS.

Thank you for your attention.”