Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan held about five hours of face-to-face talks in Abu Dhabi on 10 July, their first formal meeting without outside mediators. The United Arab Emirates hosted the session, one day after each leader held separate talks with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed. A press release from Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry said the two leaders confirmed that direct bilateral dialogue is the most effective format for normalising relations. They instructed their state commissions to press ahead with border delimitation and agreed to continue confidence-building measures while negotiations on a comprehensive peace accord proceed. The encounter follows the announcement by both foreign ministries in March that a draft peace treaty is ready. Although no signing date was set in Abu Dhabi, officials on both sides said progress had been made. The direct engagement underscores a shift away from long-standing Russian mediation and highlights the UAE’s growing role in South Caucasus diplomacy.