MP: Azerbaijan to retaliate harshly if Armenia resorts to provocations again

Azerbaijani MP Azer Badamov has said that if the illegal Armenian armed formations again resort to provocations, Azerbaijan’s response will be even more ruthless.

Since the start of the peace talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia, Armenians have started committing provocations, Caliber.Az quotes the MP as saying on June 28.

"This shows that Armenia is against the establishment of peace. As soon as the meeting of the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia starts in Washington at the initiative of the US, the illegal Armenian armed groups in Karabakh resort to provocations. The purpose of these provocations is to cast a shadow over the peace talks and make them fail. Unfortunately, one of our soldiers was wounded as a result of an Armenian provocation, but our response was very serious and 5 members of illegal Armenian formations were killed. If the Armenians resort to provocations again, their entire infrastructure can be destroyed and the process of disarming the illegal armed formations can begin,” Badamov noted.

The MP also recalled that the Farrukh operation was carried out on March 26, 2022 and the Saribaba operation on August 3: "These operations were carried out in response to provocations by illegal Armenian armed formations, which resulted in the killing of large numbers of Armenian fighters and taking control of large areas. I believe that the next provocation by the illegal Armenian armed formations must lead to an operation which will result in the cleansing of even more territory."

Badamov noted that Russian peacekeepers create conditions for provocations by illegal armed groups or these provocations are carried out on the orders of the peacekeepers: "Separatists cannot make a single step without the permission of the peacekeepers. I believe that the issue of reviewing the activities of the peacekeepers must be put on the agenda. Because their main task is to prevent provocations in Karabakh. If they cannot cope with their duties, they should leave Karabakh. After 5 years they will leave our territories anyway.”

“Security in Karabakh will only be ensured under the control of the Azerbaijani Army. First of all, the illegal Armenian units will be disarmed, thus speeding up the process of integration of Armenians living in Karabakh into Azerbaijan. Armenians living in Karabakh will be able to live in a completely safe environment after receiving Azerbaijani citizenship. At the moment the peacekeepers are hindering the integration of Karabakh Armenians. I believe that as soon as the peacekeepers leave our territories, the outstanding issues will be resolved immediately,” he added.