Expectations for Armenia to Fulfill Promises, Especially in Opening the Zangezur Corridor: Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister at the UN

The Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Burak Akçapar, in his speech at the UN Security Council meeting, characterized Azerbaijan's actions as counter-terrorism operations, claiming that they have ended and negotiations have begun.

“It has been three years since the end of the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War, and Turkey has repeatedly emphasized on all platforms that a historic opportunity has finally arisen to achieve comprehensive and lasting peace in the South Caucasus. We have called on all parties, third parties, and international actors to seize this opportunity and find a lasting solution to the ongoing conflict in the region. From the very beginning, we have fully supported and will continue to support the peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and we have also initiated a normalization process with our neighboring country, Armenia. We welcome and support all efforts aimed at establishing peace between our two neighbors, particularly the signing of a comprehensive peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan based on the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity; the signing of this agreement is very important for the success of this process.”

“However, in the last three years, we have witnessed that the Armenian side has been reluctant to fully implement the trilateral statement that ended the hostilities of the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War. Additionally, in Khankendi (Stepanakert), an illegal entity (referring to the legitimately elected authorities of the Republic of Artsakh), continues to operate, engaging in separatist activities, and illegal armed groups in Karabakh have continued armed attacks, while heavy and other military equipment remains deployed in the region, and a bloody war of mines has been waged against Azerbaijani civilians. The facts and data presented by Azerbaijan today speak for themselves.”

“On the other hand, Azerbaijan's continuous steps to resolve these issues through dialogue with Armenia, including representatives of the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh, have not been met with a cooperative attitude from the other side. Azerbaijan's humanitarian initiatives and efforts to reintegrate the local Armenian population, including the opening of the Aghdam-Khankendi (Stepanakert) road, have also been continuously rejected. Moreover, in the last three years, the Armenian side has continued to disseminate false information about the situation in the region, voicing baseless accusations, presenting so-called expert reports based on falsified data, and abusing international forums for a fabricated agenda. This is not the way to go towards peace and reconciliation.”

“The Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister justified Azerbaijan's actions, noting that, after suffering for three years from all these actions, Azerbaijan had no other choice. ‘Azerbaijan had no option but to take the steps it deemed necessary for its own security and stability, and on September 19, it initiated a counter-terrorism operation against the illegal military groups located in Nagorno-Karabakh. Of course, it was not only Azerbaijan’s sovereign right but also its obligation for the safety of its citizens. I especially want to remind you that just a few hours before the start of that counter-terrorism operation, Azerbaijan lost seven civilians due to two explosions set off by those separatist illegal groups, which was a severe provocation.’

It is worth noting that the Defense Army of Artsakh has repeatedly denied the allegations made by Azerbaijani authorities, claims reiterated by the Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister during the Security Council meeting. ‘The counter-terrorism operation rapidly concluded on September 20. The legitimate demands of Azerbaijan to disarm and disperse illegal armed groups in its territory, as well as to dissolve the illegal entity (referring to the National Assembly of the Republic of Artsakh), were finally accepted.’ We expect Armenia to fulfill its promises, especially to open the Zangezur corridor. As everyone acknowledges, Karabakh is part of Azerbaijan, and imposing any other status will never be acceptable. Our main goal should be for everyone, including Armenians, to live peacefully side by side on Azerbaijani soil.’