Speech by Former Armenian President in 1993 Fuels Accusations of Ethnic Cleansing

A recently circulated video of a 1993 speech by former Armenian President Levon Ter-Petrosyan has drawn sharp criticism from the Azerbaijani community, accusing the Armenian state of enabling a policy of ethnic cleansing. The speech, delivered at a meeting of the "Yerkrapah" Volunteer Union, highlights deeply rooted hostility and policies targeting Azerbaijanis, according to the statement from the Western Azerbaijan Community (referring to the current territory of Armenia).

In the video, Ter-Petrosyan is heard saying: "Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh resolved a 600-year-old problem by completely cleansing the territory of foreigners (referring to Azerbaijanis). If there were still 180,000 representatives of other nationalities in Armenia today, as there were in 1988, we would not have our state." He further claimed that retaining regions such as Zangezur and others would have been impossible without such measures.

The Western Azerbaijan Community condemned these remarks, stating that they confirm a pattern of "ethnic cleansing" underpinning Armenia's state policies. "The approach of 'no population, no problem' was systematically used against Azerbaijanis," the statement said.

The community linked Ter-Petrosyan’s comments to decades of Armenian policies aimed at creating a monoethnic state by expelling Azerbaijanis and others. It accused subsequent Armenian governments, from wartime leaders like Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan to current Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, of continuing this policy by preventing displaced Azerbaijanis from returning to their homes.

"Even more than 30 years later, the Armenian public and diaspora either support or attempt to conceal these actions, which is profoundly disappointing for Western Azerbaijanis," the statement added.

The Western Azerbaijan Community called on the international community to condemn what it described as Armenia’s "racist policies" and urged dialogue to ensure the safe and dignified return of displaced Azerbaijanis to their ancestral lands.

The community emphasized its commitment to pursuing justice within the framework of international law, stating: "We will not relent in our efforts to ensure accountability and the peaceful return of Western Azerbaijanis."

Armenia has yet to respond to these allegations, further exacerbating tensions between the two South Caucasus nations.