Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev Issues New Threats to Armenia, Declares Vardenis and Syunik Region as Azerbaijani Lands

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has directed new threats towards Armenia, declaring that Vardenis and the Syunik region are Azerbaijani lands. Aliyev visited Karvachar (Kelbajar), which was transferred to Azerbaijan following the trilateral statement on November 9, 2020. Notably, prior to his visit, there had been intense exchanges of gunfire in this direction, during which an Armenian serviceman was killed. The Azerbaijani side also suffered losses, with three deceased and one wounded. The enemy had shelled the villages of Kut and Norabak as well.

Near the Vardenis-Karvachar highway, Aliyev stated that Vardenis is "old Azerbaijani land." He said, "This is Geichan, old Azerbaijani land. In 1930, the Basargechar region was established within Armenia’s territory, where the overwhelming majority of the population were Azerbaijanis. The residents of Zod (Sotk) village were also Azerbaijanis. They were expelled. Only in June 1969 did Armenia rename the Basargechar region to Vardenis. I ask that, in reports and generally in our vocabulary, we should not use Vardenis but restore the name Basargechar," he emphasized.

Regarding the situation near Lake Sevan in Syunik, where Azerbaijani armed forces seized positions at the expense of Armenian territory since May, Aliyev stated that Yerevan's "claims" are unfounded. "That border has been in the hands of Armenians for 30 years; in May, after the snow melted, we moved beyond those borders and captured our positions. We have settled in Zangezur and are fortifying there. This is our land. The statements from the Armenian side are baseless. We are on our land," said the Azerbaijani president.

He noted that "Western Zangezur" (referring to the Syunik region of the Republic of Armenia) is currently under Armenian control, but Azerbaijan intends to utilize it through the so-called "Zangezur corridor" and "return its citizens to their ancestral homeland." The Azerbaijani president added that this issue has been left for the next phase.