Azerbaijan slams Armenia for obstructing peace, calls for real commitment

The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry issued a stern condemnation of the allegations made by Ararat Mirzoyan, Armenia’s Foreign Minister, during a press conference with Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira on March 20.

Aykhan Hajizada, the ministry’s spokesperson, rejected the accusations in a commentary, calling them baseless, Caliber.Az reports citing the ministry. 

He stated, “Unfortunately, instead of working to eliminate the challenges that stand in the way of signing the peace treaty, the Armenian side is engaged in manipulations by labelling Azerbaijan as a country that is not interested in peace.”

Hajizada emphasized that Armenia, not Azerbaijan, had initiated aggression against its neighbour, adding, “It should be reminded that it was Armenia but not Azerbaijan that launched aggression against its neighbour, ethnically cleansed all the Azerbaijanis both from Armenia and the territories it has occupied for almost 30 years, committed massacres, erased cities and towns to the ground. Azerbaijan has never pursued a policy of aggression against Armenia and has never been interested in such a situation that turned the region into a zone of confrontation.”

The spokesperson also addressed Mirzoyan's remarks about Armenia’s role in recent peace treaty negotiations, noting, “Even the Armenian Foreign Minister’s comments that Armenia by agreeing to the most recent edition of the draft peace treaty, paved the way for finalization of the draft text negotiations demonstrates how this country has impeded the process by bringing unacceptable propositions into the text for the last two and a half years of negotiations. It was due to Azerbaijan’s diplomacy and measures that enabled us to conclude the negotiations on the text.”

While defending Azerbaijan’s position, Hajizada warned, “But this by no means should be understood that we are going to disregard the continuing claims of Armenia against the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan as enshrined in the constitution of Armenia, as well as Armenia’s actions that try to preserve the remnants of the conflict such as the Minsk Group and related OSCE institutions.”

The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry reaffirmed that the peace treaty would be ready for signature once Armenia addressed the remaining challenges. “We once again reiterate that the treaty will be ready for signature when Armenia will eliminate the remaining challenges,” Hajizada said.

The spokesperson also took issue with Armenia’s claims regarding Azerbaijan’s response to proposals on communication and “arms control mechanisms,” suggesting that Armenia either misinterpreted or manipulated Azerbaijan’s position. “When the Armenian Foreign Minister and other officials state that Azerbaijan has not provided a positive response to so-called proposals on communication and ‘arms control mechanisms,’ it seems that the Armenian side either does not follow the related comments by the Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan or they suffer from dishonesty and a desire for attention, validation, or to manipulate others,” he added.

Addressing calls for the release of Armenian detainees charged with serious crimes, including war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and torture, Hajizada made it clear that it was Azerbaijan’s right and responsibility to investigate and prosecute these offences in accordance with international and domestic law. “When it comes to calls to release the detainees of Armenian origin who have been charged or convicted of war crimes, ethnic cleansing, military aggression, torture, and other serious offences, we emphasize that it is Azerbaijan’s inalienable right and obligation to investigate and prosecute the offences under the Geneva Conventions and generally under international and domestic law.”

Finally, Hajizada pointed out that if Armenia was truly concerned about humanitarian issues, it should take responsibility for resolving unresolved matters, such as the return of displaced Azerbaijanis and cooperation on landmine removal. “If Armenia is really interested in addressing the unresolved humanitarian issues, they must ensure the rights of displaced Azerbaijanis from Armenia to return to their homes in safety and dignity, inform us on the whereabouts of around 4000 missing Azerbaijanis, and cooperate in the provision of maps of landmines they massively placed in the territories of Azerbaijan.”

In closing, the spokesperson reaffirmed Azerbaijan’s commitment to peace: “Azerbaijan will continue its peace efforts in all directions, and will resolutely prevent any steps against this process.”

By Tamilla Hasanova