Azerbaijanis and Armenians should learn to look without a sniper scope

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- A 44-day war between Azerbaijan and Armenia resulted in signing a trilateral statement on November 10. We are witnessing the restoration of the liberated territories of Azerbaijan. How, in your opinion, should this process be regulated, and what work is ahead?

- Naturally, we will believe that the war ended with a positive result for us. In the short term, it seems unrealistic that either side will want to start a war again. It is not convincing that any of the parties will think about the resumption of military operations after the arrival of the Russian peacekeepers. Russia deployed its peacekeeping mission here to prevent the opportunity to carry out military operations; it would not like its image be questioned. Russia will dispute with the entire international community regarding the deployment of its peacekeepers here unilaterally.

The main problem that now interests Russia and Azerbaijan is ensuring stability here so that Azerbaijan can restore its territories and demonstrate to the international community that positive processes are going on here. Azerbaijan, taking advantage of this calm, must complete the security of the regions as soon as possible, as well as the process of demining. Because people rush to the liberated regions to see the graves of their relatives, to see their homeland, without waiting for the restoration of the infrastructure there. It is very dangerous to leave them in places where safety issues have not been resolved, where the demining process has not been carried out.

- Do you think that the discussions around Nagorno-Karabakh are over? How will stability be ensured in the territories where Armenians live, without restoring the laws of Azerbaijan, full restoration of peace in the region?

- I do not think that the discussions around Nagorno-Karabakh are over. On the contrary, we have entered a new stage. Until now, our border with Armenia was closed,  a security zone 20 kilometers deep  was between Nagorno-Karabakh and us. People felt more comfortable in this situation.  From now on Azerbaijanis and Armenians will live as neighbors, and instead of barbed wire and deep trenches, there will be Russian peacekeepers between them. From now on, they will be able to see each other not through the sight of a sniper rifle, but from a nearby hill in the distance of an eye.

It is impossible to imagine the end of the conflict without defining the status of the Armenians living there. But thinking about the region's economic development can make a difference. In this case, the reconstruction and development of the regions of Azerbaijan will not bypass the territory of Karabakh, where the Armenians live. Today we see that the Russian government, using the presence of peacekeepers in the region, is restoring destroyed houses; provides humanitarian aid. However, against the background of large-scale construction work that will begin soon in Azerbaijan, this will look rather insignificant. The main thing is that Azerbaijan can protect the population from unauthorized visits to the occupied territories, think over a plan for normal development.

- It turns out that now people should not be allowed to visit the territories liberated from the occupation.

- Yes. The presence of the military there does not mean that it will be safe there. The military with their mine detectors are moving along known routes. They understand the danger lurking in houses, buildings, in cemeteries; therefore, they move little in this direction. Now imagine how a resident of a district or village who wants to get there rushes without looking back and happily walk between houses, through cemeteries or memorial sites. People will look for their houses, the graves of parents and memorable places without following any safety rules. From the point of view of emotions, it can be understood, but it would be correct on the part of the government not to let people into these areas without a military escort. It would be better to prohibit people from visiting areas without announcing complete mine clearance, and to bring violators to justice.

- How long will it take to complete this process?

- The process of ensuring the security of the occupied territories of Azerbaijan will not take much time. This will require only the strengthening of state borders, strengthening of military control in the places of residence of the Azerbaijani and Armenian population. The process of demining with the help of mine detectors and the military, ANAMA and other international organizations can take more than 5 years. I even wrote about this in my book "Nagorno-Karabakh: The Difficult Path of People's Diplomacy", published in 2019. Paying attention to the processes and comments, I do not think I am seriously mistaken.

Now the need for the profession of a mine detector will increase in Azerbaijan. There is a need for a large number of people to learn this profession and get involved in the mine hunting process. At the same time, it will be necessary to purchase military equipment that detonates mines. I propose to involve international organizations in this work. For example, in England there is The Halo Trust, which worked in the South Caucasus, they can also be invited. The process of clearing unexploded ordnance, finding mines and clearing them is one of the most difficult stages of this conflict.

- When can the restoration of our settlements begin?

- It requires a lot of time. First, Azerbaijan must determine the funds that it will spend on reconstruction. Then Azerbaijan should be interested in attracting international donors. Because this is a humanitarian problem, and its elimination is not only a matter for the state, the humanitarian problem must be eliminated by means of international donors. This is one of the components of international law. After that, the infrastructure of these territories must be restored. For this, the state can start using its existing financial capabilities.

Do not forget that the talk is about large-scale restoration work. The state should plan the restoration of regional centers, taking into account their architecture before the occupation. Naturally, modern building materials and architectural elements will be used, and this is a more rational step. However, the famous buildings that existed in the areas before the occupation, but were destroyed, must be restored to their original form, so as not to lose the connection between the past and the present of this area. I believe that by building standard houses in some villages, people will be able to return there. However, there will be thousands of people who want to restore their past and the memory of their families, who want to restore their homes as they were in the original. Now there are enough people with opportunities among the internally displaced persons. The government should allow people who want to restore their original home to do it themselves. In this case, the burden on the state will decrease.

- Assume that the state has restored all cities and towns in 5 years. What should be done to get people back there, and will this process be difficult? –

- After the restoration of the regions, the state should cancel the status of forced migrant; announce that all benefits will be available only in these territories. Since the internally displaced persons did not participate in the distribution of share land, their share will be provided to them after returning to their homes. In these regions, loans should be issued at a very low interest rate, tax breaks should be announced at 0.1 percent. It should be promised that the business would be provided with soft loans and low tax rates.

After the resettlement of internally displaced persons, the houses, which had been built for them by the state, should be transferred to the families of soldiers and families of martyrs. After the recognition of the property rights of internally displaced persons who have their own apartments, all their statuses in various regions of the republic should be canceled.

After the start of the process of return to the liberated regions, all state enterprises will be transferred to these regions. If the people working in these enterprises naturally want to keep their jobs, they will be the first to show interest in returning to the regions. Tens of thousands of people will choose alternative paths not to lose their jobs in the areas where they now live.

After the liberation of the regions, the registration procedures for all cities and districts of the republic will be limited. The registration of persons in the status of IDPs has so far been a difficult procedure over the years. However, among the internally displaced persons there are such valuable specialists that thousands of companies that are not interested in their dismissal will create conditions for them, and will try to leave them in Baku. At the same time, if earlier there were 10 children in one family in some regions, now they are all married and even have grandchildren. When they left the occupied area, they had one house, and now, if they have to return, they need ten houses. Population growth can be considered one of the problems encountered in the return process. In general, the process of returning people is a lengthy process.

The elderly internally displaced persons want to return to their homes and live there until the end of their days; and they want be buried there. These feelings will stimulate people, even their children born in Baku and other regions, to return.