Keshikchidag is the territory of Azerbaijan - Khalaf Khalafov

Baku/07.16.19/Turan: Any cultural, religious and other non-legal facts cannot serve as a basis for the delimitation of the state border between Azerbaijan and Georgia, stated Khalaf Khalafov, the Deputy Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan, Special Representative of the President of the country on border and Caspian issues.

"The area covering the Keshikchidag cave complex, according to all existing legal documents and the actual state of use, belongs to Azerbaijan. This is also reflected in the topographic duty maps approved by the Supreme Council of the Georgian SSR as early as 1963, and until the collapse of the USSR was considered by both sides as an administrative boundary. Therefore, from a legal point of view, any disputes or claims related to the site are out of the question. This site, like other uncoordinated sites, should be in-consistent framework of delimitation, which should be enshrined in the treaty on the state border, which will be signed between the two countries", AZERTAJ quoted Khalafov.

He described the attack by a group of persons on Azerbaijani border guards on July 14 as "a provocative criminal act, committed by a group of persons against the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Azerbaijan Republic."

He believes that this incident is not related to the government of Georgia.

Khalafov noted that "by their inaction, Georgian border guards are responsible for the passage of these provocateurs and criminal elements into the territory of the Azerbaijan Republic." "Certainly, such provocations and incidents harm the relations of friendship, good neighborliness and strategic partnership between the two countries. Those who committed this crime should be brought to justice and punished in accordance with the requirements of the law," Khalafov said.

He regretfully stated that there were long breaks in the work of the commissions of Georgia and Azerbaijan due to the frequent change of partners from the Georgian side.

"The Azerbaijani side made efforts to consistently and continuously hold meetings. At the 12th meeting on the delimitation and demarcation of the state border between the Republic of Azerbaijan and Georgia, held from 23 to 24 May this year in Baku, at the level of the working groups of the commissions, an agreement was reached on examining on the place of the uncoordinated sections of the state border line and carrying out relevant measurement works, and our side proposed to carry out these works in the second half of August of this the next meeting of the commissions is planned to be held in Georgia," said Khalafov. -06B-