Armenia must declare: Karabakh is Azerbaijan – Ilham Aliyev

Baku/18.04.23/Turan:  President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan emphasized in an interview with the AzTV state channel on Tuesday that the issue of the borders between Azerbaijan and Armenia should be resolved in accordance with the 1991 Almaty Declaration.

He referred to the meetings in Prague and Sochi in 2022, where Armenia officially recognized the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan, and a decision was made to establish borders based on the Almaty Declaration. The Almaty Declaration, a document on the establishment of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), recognizes the borders of former Soviet republics as the borders of newly formed states.

President Aliyev stated, "If they said 'A', they should say 'B'. Having declared its readiness for the peace treaty and the Almaty Declaration, Armenia should also officially declare that 'Karabakh is Azerbaijan'." He also warned that revanchist forces are rising again in Armenia and emphasized that the Azerbaijani army is stronger than it was in 2020.

Furthermore, President Aliyev stated that Azerbaijan will not discuss issues related to Karabakh with anyone, as it is their internal affair. He mentioned that Armenians living in Karabakh have the option to take Azerbaijani citizenship or choose another place of residence, and they have complete freedom in this matter. He emphasized that this issue must be resolved based on human rights.

President Aliyev's speech can be seen as a response to a speech by Nikol Pashinyan in Yerevan today. The issue of the borders between Azerbaijan and Armenia remains a contentious one, and Azerbaijan is insisting on the implementation of the 1991 Almaty Declaration in resolving the matter.--06B--