Azerbaijan urges Armenia to amend constitution for genuine peace progress

Azerbaijani President’s Assistant, Head of the Foreign Policy Department of the Presidential Administration, Hikmet Hajiyev, has emphasized that Azerbaijan has never been an occupying country, reiterating that the nation has always adhered to the norms and principles of international law in its relations with neighbouring states.

In contrast, he described Armenia as an occupying country, aligning it with the few states considered occupiers and aggressors in the post-World War II system of international relations, Caliber.Az reports.

Hajiyev pointed to the example of post-war Iraq, noting that after the conflict between Iraq and Kuwait, specific restrictions were imposed on the development of the Iraqi Armed Forces. "We believe that similar proportional restrictions should be applied to the Armenian Armed Forces as well," he stated.

Hajiyev also criticized Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's remarks concerning the dissolution of the OSCE Minsk Group, calling them misleading and distorted. He argued that the Minsk Group's relevance has long since expired and that Armenia's continued efforts to keep it active are part of a strategy, supported by Western allies, to maintain a narrative of an unresolved conflict.

"The fact that Armenia keeps this institution on the agenda and continues efforts in this direction suggests that Yerevan is trying to create an impression of an unfinished conflict," Hajiyev said.

Addressing Pashinyan's comparison of the Armenian and Azerbaijani constitutions, Hajiyev highlighted a clause in the Armenian Constitution that still contains territorial claims to Azerbaijan, specifically the annexation of Karabakh to Armenia.

"As long as this is not changed, we see serious problems in reaching a peace treaty between the two states," he noted. He called on Armenian society to amend their constitution to demonstrate a genuine desire for peace. "There were no territorial claims to any state in the Constitution of Azerbaijan, and it is a document reflecting the right will of the Azerbaijani people," Hajiyev added.

He concluded by urging the Armenian Prime Minister and political leadership to take concrete steps toward a real peace agenda, encouraging regional cooperation for sustainable peace.

"We recommend the Prime Minister and the political leadership of Armenia to take steps to promote a real peace agenda, to support a peace agenda with the participation of the states of the region," he said.