The Surrender of Shusha, by Former Head of Azerbaijan Yagub Mamedov

On the 21st anniversary of the occupation of Shusha former head of Azerbaijan, Yagub Mamedov commented in an interview with Turan on reasons why the city was surrendered to the enemy. In his view, there were political and military reasons for the capture of Shusha.

At that time, Azerbaijan virtually had no regular army or military equipment or weapons, even though there was a Ministry of Defense. Time was needed to prepare armed forces.

With this in mind, and given the severe war situation, Azerbaijan took Iran's proposal to hold a meeting between the presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia, in Tehran.

Different countries and the OSCE tried to deal with the situation by reaching temporary truces for short periods, but each truce was violated.

Mamedov did not agree with the opinion that Iran provided military assistance to Armenia.

"Brokered by Iran, we signed a memorandum of ceasefire with Armenia, addressing the issue by political and peaceful means. However, external forces who did not want Iran's mediation and the opposing political forces of Azerbaijan and Armenia, undermined the agreement and the town was occupied," said Mamedov.

Another reason for the occupation was the severe situation in Azerbaijan.  "It was one of the hardest periods in the country's history of the 20th century. Domestically, there were big controversies and struggle for power. The Soviet Union collapsed and the economy was destroyed. In such a situation, various forces were ready to do anything to come to power," said Mamedov.

Did Mamedov face pressure from external and internal forces?  Responding to this question, Mamedov said the day after the leadership’s arrival, he called on all the opposition forces to cooperate.  At the talks, they discussed issues on joint activities to try to solve the Karabakh conflict and cease the power struggle.  "They agreed on the words, and acted differently. Streets and squares were filled with protesters. In other areas, they overthrew the administration heads, appointing their own men. I even appointed two members of the opposition as ministers, Tahir Aliyev for the Interior and Rahim Gaziyev for the Defense. However, the situation with each passing day was getting worse," said Mamedov.

Was there a role of Russia in the return to power of Ayaz Mutalibov in May 14, 1992? To this question Mamedov answered:  "Certainly, Russia had its own interests. In the occupation of Shusha, it was a large part of Russia. In the occupation of Khojaly, the 366th Russian regiment was also involved," he said, adding that representatives of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not arrive in Tehran, where there were negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan. It was promised that the Ambassador of Russia would participate in the negotiations, but he did not come.

The situation worsened, with the return of Mutalibov to power on the one hand, and on the other, the struggle for power between different forces.

Self-defense units, most of which were created by the opposition, fought in the country. They did not obey the Ministry of Defense and did not want to operate under a single command.

What are the implications of these historical events, and who's to blame? To this the then Head of State said, "I can not name specific perpetrators. Naming someone, one must provide evidence. Otherwise, they will say it is libel. However, then the political situation, the struggle for power, the actions of interested external forces did their business," concluded Mamedov. -16/03B-