​​​​​​​ISTANBUL

Azerbaijan and Armenia agreed Thursday to put additional efforts to conclude a peace treaty that is being discussed between the two neighbors.

Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and his Armenian counterpart, Ararat Mirzoyan, met in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meetings, according to a statement by the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry that said the talks were held at the initiative of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the parties agreed to conclude negotiations “in the shortest possible period.”

“The Azerbaijani and Armenian sides expressed their gratitude to the Secretary of State for organizing the meeting,” it added.

The US State Department said Blinken commended both ministers on the progress made toward peace and encouraged their countries to finalize an agreement "as soon as possible."

"The Secretary underscored that a peace agreement would bring increased stability and prosperity to the region," it said.

Relations between Baku and Yerevan have been tense since 1991 when the Armenian military occupied Karabakh -- a territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, and seven adjacent regions.

Most of the territory was liberated by Azerbaijan during a 44-day war in the fall of 2020, which ended after a Russian-brokered peace agreement that opened the door to normalization and the demarcation of their border.

In September 2023, Azerbaijan established full sovereignty in Karabakh following an "anti-terrorist operation" after which separatist forces in the region surrendered.