The dirty trail of Armenia From occupation to financial schemes and terrorism

When we, Azerbaijani journalists, write that Armenia provided political, financial, and military support to the Karabakh separatists, we rely on facts. One more of these facts was revealed today at the trial in the Baku Military Court, where the former head of the Karabakh junta, Arayik Harutyunyan, answered the prosecutor’s questions about the “banking system” of the illegal entity that operated in the territories of Azerbaijan previously occupied by Armenian armed forces.

According to Harutyunyan, “Artsakhbank,” which was presented as the main “bank” of the separatist regime, was registered by the Central Bank of the Republic of Armenia. Its place of registration was Yerevan, while its “main branch” operated in Khankendi. This “bank” also had “branches” in other Azerbaijan’s formerly occupied territories, where branches of other Armenian banks also operated.

This is yet another indisputable proof that both the current and all previous leaderships of Armenia provided financial assistance to the Karabakh separatists. It also confirms that all attempts to portray the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict as a "struggle of the Armenian population of Karabakh to improve their socio-economic situation" are lies and absolute nonsense. What we see here is a clear example of deliberate actions by the Armenian state against Azerbaijan.

Previously, numerous pieces of evidence were presented at the Baku Military Court demonstrating that official Yerevan provided political, financial, and military support to the Karabakh separatists. In particular, one of the former leaders of the so-called “Nagorno Karabakh Republic,” Arkady Ghukasyan, stated that during the Khojaly genocide, the leadership of the self-proclaimed regime was exercised by Artur Mkrtchyan, while the military operations were commanded by Arkady Ter-Tadevosyan, nicknamed “commando,” who held various leadership positions in the Armenian armed forces.

In addition, the Baku Military Court named several Armenian Armed Forces servicemen involved in the missile attack on Ganja, which stands as a classic example of waging war by terrorist methods. On October 11, 2020, a missile equipped with an 8F44 fragmentation-high-explosive warhead was deliberately launched from an Elbrus missile system toward Ganja, which was outside the combat zone. There were no military operations or military facilities in the city at that time. In other words, this was a deliberate attack by the Armenian side on peaceful Azerbaijani civilians. As a result of the missile strike, 10 civilians were intentionally killed, 1 was seriously injured, 18 sustained minor injuries, and another 32 suffered injuries of unspecified severity.

Former leaders of the Karabakh junta testifying at the Baku court repeatedly stated that they did not have the weapons used in these strikes. Accordingly, they strongly imply direct responsibility of the current Armenian leadership for committing this war crime. Nevertheless, for almost five years, official Yerevan has refused to admit any guilt for this monstrous crime against humanity.

At the same time, crimes against Azerbaijan continued to be committed with the knowledge of the highest political and military leadership of Armenia even after its defeat in the 44-day war and after Nikol Pashinyan signed the trilateral ceasefire statement on November 10, 2020. The “mine terror,” which has claimed around 400 Azerbaijani victims, is part of this criminal activity by the Armenian leadership.

“After the Second Karabakh War, mines were illegally delivered from Armenia to the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan and planted in various locations until the Lachin border checkpoint was established [...] These mines were produced in Armenia in 2021. So, it once again shows that after the Second Karabakh War, these mines were deliberately delivered to carry out terrorist acts against Azerbaijan,” stated Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in his address to the nation on September 20, 2023. It should be emphasised that Armenia has yet to hand over precise maps of the minefields to Azerbaijan, which would allow for their clearance.

As we can see, we are faced with a large body of evidence of numerous crimes committed against Azerbaijan with the knowledge or by the orders of both former and current Armenian leadership—political, financial, and military alike. Yet, to this day, not a single former or current Armenian official has been held accountable for these crimes.

Moreover, throughout the years of occupation of Azerbaijani lands, during the 44-day war, and even now, we hear words of support from various biased politicians in different countries directed at the former leaders of the Karabakh junta and Armenia. And to call this entire troupe anything other than the devil’s advocates would be an understatement.