Aliyev announces a new era for Azerbaijan at the UN Victory and restoration

In his address to the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev highlighted the history of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, drawing the attention of both attendees and the global audience to the key factors that had hindered its resolution for decades.

The President placed particular emphasis on the prolonged inaction of the OSCE Minsk Group. He recalled that throughout nearly three decades of Armenia’s occupation of Azerbaijani territories, the group largely aimed to maintain the status quo and keep the conflict frozen.

“The OSCE Minsk Group, established in 1992 to facilitate a settlement, has failed in its mission. Instead of enforcing the norms and principles of international law, its co-chairs sought to preserve the status quo and keep the conflict frozen,” President Aliyev stated.

This development became a compelling argument for the dissolution of the OSCE Minsk Group—an initiative proposed by Baku. In this context, President Aliyev noted: “Azerbaijan and Armenia jointly appealed for the closure of the OSCE Minsk Group and related structures, as an obsolete mechanism no longer relevant to the peace process. Accordingly, on 1 September, the OSCE adopted a decision to permanently close these structures.”

With this statement, the President of Azerbaijan reaffirmed Baku’s commitment to the Washington agreements of August 8. He highlighted that the summit in Washington marks the beginning of a new stage in Azerbaijan–U.S. relations.

“Overall, the agreements reached during my August visit to the United States carry historic significance. I want to express my gratitude to President Donald Trump for opening a new chapter in the US-Azerbaijan relationship, for his decision to elevate it to the strategic partnership level, and for his support to the peace process between Azerbaijan and Armenia,” President Aliyev added.

Notably, these two key points highlighted by the Azerbaijani leader in his speech underscore that, unlike previous U.S. administrations, the South Caucasus is now a priority for the current White House.

This perspective aligns closely with Donald Trump’s warm statements regarding Azerbaijan and President Ilham Aliyev, expressed both in Washington and in New York. Together, these developments signal that the United States views Azerbaijan as a leading country in the region and a reliable partner for multilateral cooperation—a nuance clearly recognised by the Azerbaijani head of state.

“Together with President Donald Trump, we signed the Memorandum of Understanding between the two governments regarding the establishment of a Strategic Working Group to develop a Charter on strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and the United States. It opens new horizons for partnership in political, economic, energy, regional connectivity, defence, security, and other fields,” President Aliyev stated, confirming the broad scope of bilateral interests between Baku and Washington.

In his substantive speech, the head of state, speaking about the large-scale revival of Karabakh, once again drew the international community’s attention to the problem of mine-related terrorism, which continues to claim civilian lives and cause injuries.

“Right after the victory in the Patriotic War of 2020, Azerbaijan started the large-scale reconstruction program in the liberated territories. During the time of occupation, Armenia levelled to the ground hundreds of Azerbaijani cities and villages, deliberately ruined 65 mosques. That was the policy of Armenia, which was ruled by war criminals for almost 30 years. We are rebuilding villages and cities razed to the ground. Under the Great Return Program, already more than 50,000 people live, work, and study in the liberated territories.

One of the gravest humanitarian challenges facing Azerbaijan in the post-conflict period is the landmine contamination during the time of Armenian occupation. Since November 2020, more than 400 Azerbaijani civilians and military personnel have been killed or seriously injured by landmine explosions,” President Aliyev said, emphasising that this massive threat continues to hinder the safe return of displaced persons and the implementation of reconstruction projects.

We believe that this statement by Ilham Aliyev also serves as a direct reminder to the Armenian leadership that Yerevan must provide Baku with accurate maps of minefields, which would contribute to the swift resolution of this issue.

Finally, one more important point deserves attention. Concluding his speech at the UN General Assembly, President Ilham Aliyev stated: “Azerbaijan has entered a new era. We won, both in war and in peace. We ended the occupation and started reconstruction. Justice has triumphed, sovereignty has been consolidated, and peace is de-facto reached. We stand prepared to share our positive experience.The achievements of recent years are not only a victory and success for Azerbaijan. They are also a demonstration that international law must ultimately prevail.”

These words of the president underscored the country’s accomplishments at the highest international forum and sent a clear message to all adversaries that Azerbaijan is steadfast in its commitment to bring peace, progress, and prosperity to the region.