President: Azerbaijan not recognize Armenia's territorial integrity if it fails to sign peace treaty [UPDATE]

President Ilham Aliyev has said that if Armenia refuses to sign a peace agreement, Azerbaijan will not recognize Armenia's territorial integrity.

He made the remarks speaking at the 5th Congress of World Azerbaijanis - Victory Congress, which kicked off in Shusha on April 22.

“The text of the agreement can be prepared and signed soon. Thus, the relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan can be established, including diplomatic. By making this proposal, we once again show our good intentions and, I repeat, show foresight. The revengeful forces occasionally raising their voices in Armenia should remember that this is the only way out for Armenia, their last chance perhaps. If they refuse, we will not recognize the territorial integrity of Armenia either and will officially declare that,” he said.

Stressing that the issue of normalization of Azerbaijani-Armenian relations is on the agenda now, the president recalled that Azerbaijan put forward a proposal consisting of five specific principles, and Armenia has accepted these principles.

“Thus, the Armenian leadership has officially stated that it recognizes the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and has no territorial claims to Azerbaijan and will not do so in the future. I think this is an important moment for the post-conflict period, and we intend to conduct further negotiations on the basis of these five principles,” he said.

Speaking about the post-war period, Aliyev underlined that leading international organizations have embraced the postwar realities, including the UN, which held an international event in Shusha.

“The European Union is currently very active in the process of normalization of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia. The OSCE understands perfectly well that the Minsk Group no longer exists... Other international organizations, for example, the Non-Aligned Movement we are chairing, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and all other leading international organizations have supported our position and accepted the post-conflict realities,” he said.

Aliyev added that all neighboring countries have accepted the post-conflict realities as well, noting that five neighboring countries have now established a 3+3 format of cooperation.

Shusha is Azerbaijani city

The president underlined that everyone can see that Shusha is an Azerbaijani city.

“If it were not the case, Shusha would not be in such a difficult state. You and other visitors have come here now, a year and a half after the war. But if you had come here immediately after the war, you would have seen the situation... If this city were Armenian, would they bring it to such a state?” he said.

Noting that a total of 1,800 people lived there, he stated that 90 percent of them were servicemen and members of their families. He emphasized that there is not a single surviving historical building left there, adding that Armenians also dried up 17 of the 17 water springs, desecrated mosques, demolished them and knocked down palaces.

“They simply exploited our natural resources, and not only in Shusha. All other cities are in the same situation. Foreign experts and journalists have likened the completely destroyed Aghdam to Hiroshima. Yes, Hiroshima was destroyed by an atomic bomb, whereas Aghdam and other cities were destroyed as a result of Armenian vandalism,” he said.

He stressed that everybody coming to the liberated lands can and must see the Armenian savagery.

“They should see that we have destroyed not only the occupier but also the fascists. All their actions between the first Karabakh war and the Second Karabakh War, in the period between the two wars, were fascist in nature... We have crushed fascism. We have saved the South Caucasus from fascism,” he said.

“However, there are still manifestations of fascism there, as some circles in Armenia and Armenians of the world, Armenians living abroad are still trying to intimidate us. However, they should not forget the history of the second Karabakh war,” he said.

Additionally, he stated that during the year and a half, a lot has been done in the field of army building.

Conflict resolution

Aliyev noted that the solution to the Karabakh conflict was a major task for him as president.

“Since day one of my presidency, the solution of this issue and the development of the post-conflict period in the interests of Azerbaijan have been my top priority,” he said.

He emphasized that instead of 30 years of meaningless negotiations, the Azerbaijani people demonstrated their strength, restored justice, restored international law and proved to the whole world that Azerbaijan is a great nation and the Azerbaijani people never intended to come to terms with the occupation.

“But I really wanted this issue to be resolved peacefully, not through war. Because I believed that this issue could be resolved peacefully. The norms and principles of international law supported the position of our country. The world's leading international organizations adopted decisions and resolutions in support of Azerbaijan's position and based on justice. Armenia's policy of aggression was no longer a secret to anyone in the world,” he said.

Moreover, the president noted that the cost of Armenia’s destroyed weapons, equipment and equipment captured as booty is at least $4-5 billion.

“It is also another matter where such a poor country could get this money, but there is almost no Armenian army now. During the war, there were mass desertions in the Armenian army. According to their own sources, there were 10,000 deserters in the Armenian army,” he said.

Stressing that there were no deserters in the Azerbaijani army, Aliyev stated that “this is the greatness of our people, the confidence of our people in victory, the unity of the people and government, and the unity of Azerbaijanis all over the world.

“At the same time, in your communications, comments on social networks and other resources you conveyed the true voice of Azerbaijan to the public. That is still necessary today. There is still a need for that today, because even though the war is over, the territorial claims against us are not over yet. I am sure that this will end,” he said.

Aliyev expressed confidence that as a result of Azerbaijan’s efforts in the post-war period and as a result of subsequent efforts, it will be possible to get rid of territorial claims of Armenia and Armenians of the world against Azerbaijan.

Minsk Group

Mentioning that the high-ranking officials in Armenia are still talking about the Minsk Group, the president underlined that this is pointless and makes no sense. He added that the Minsk Group was virtually paralyzed in 2019.

“The group, which was mandated to address the issue in 1992, has failed to achieve any results. Looking at the actions of this group and proposals in retrospect, we can see again that this group was not established to resolve the problem. We were just a little naive at the time. This group was established not to resolve the problem, but to perpetuate the fact of occupation,” he said.

The president underlined that Azerbaijan fought the war with dignity and is acting with dignity in the post-war period as well.

Diaspora organizations

Aliyev noted that in recent years, the country’s diaspora organizations have become very active, both during the second Karabakh war and before.

“I am very glad that our diaspora organizations operating abroad are in constant contact with Azerbaijan, in contact with the State Committee, and coordination between diaspora organizations operating in different countries is improving,” he said.

He added that the young Azerbaijanis living abroad must know the history of the second Karabakh war and convey this truth to their friends.

“In other words, Azerbaijanis living abroad are a great force. Their activity is very important for our country. Their activity and communication of Azerbaijani realities and the protection of Azerbaijan’s interests strengthen our state, of course. As the state of Azerbaijan, we are always interested in the lives of Azerbaijanis living abroad,” he said.

Congress of World Azerbaijanis

The president underlined that the name of the congress is Victory Congress, which is natural.

“Because for the first time after the historic Victory, Azerbaijanis from all over the world are gathering to hold a congress. In general, the name Victory is very appropriate for our people. You have come here through Victory Road, the name of the congress is Victory Congress. At present, Victory Museums are being built in different parts of the country, first of all, in liberated lands,” he said.

He stressed that “from now on, the people of Azerbaijan will forever live as victorious people, and the state of Azerbaijan will live as a victorious state.

“The congress being held in Shusha has a tremendous historic significance. Azerbaijan has entered a new era... I am fully convinced that from now on the Azerbaijani people will forever live as victorious people and the Azerbaijani state will forever live as a victorious state. We are on our own land, we stand firm on this land, and no one will ever be able to move us from these lands,” he said.