We Will Not Go Anywhere: Aliyev on 'Hasty Withdrawal'

Baku is not planning to withdraw its troops from the conditional border. According to Azerbaijani media, this was stated by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, in an interview with local television channels.

“Several partners asked me to have the sides withdraw their troops. I asked where to take them. They told me from where they came. I said, ‘From Baku, are we supposed to return to Baku?’ We have not been in these territories for 30 years. If these territories were a border and Armenia recognized it as a border, then that would mean something. But they did not consider it a border; they thought their border was in ‘Aghdam’ (quotes by Tert.am, Aknam). No one answered my question. Therefore, we are not going anywhere; we are not moving a step back from our positions occupied in May 2021 or September 2022, because the border needs to be clarified,” said Aliyev.