Author 丨 Siqi Editor 丨 Qi Fei
On 27 September, Azerbaijan and Armenia exchanged fire in Nagorno-Karabakh (hereinafter referred to as the "Nagorno-Karabakh region"), which has lasted for six days. Heavy shelling by forces on both sides has further increased the number of casualties, which have now resulted in at least more than a hundred deaths and hundreds of wounds, including many civilians and children.
Nagorno-Karabakh means "black garden on the mountain" in Azerbaijani language, because the land is lush with vegetation, and from a distance, dark green plants merge together, almost a large black garden. Disputes in the Nagorno-Karabakh region have continued over the past few decades. In 1991, Azerbaijan and Armenia became independent after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Nagorno-Karabakh region was assigned to the newly independent Azerbaijan, and the international community generally recognized Azerbaijan's sovereignty over the Nagorno-Karabakh region, but the Nagorno-Karabakh region has its own national name, that is, the "Nagorno-Karabakh Republic", although Armenia expressed its support for the "Nagorno-Karabakh Republic", it has not been publicly recognized. At the end of 1991, Azerbaijan and Armenia went to war over the Nagorno-Karabakh region, and Armenia occupied Nagorno-Karabakh and parts of the surrounding area, and the two countries reached a ceasefire agreement in 1994.
On September 29, local time, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement saying that in order to repel another military aggression by Armenia and ensure the safety of densely populated areas and civilian populations in the internationally recognized territory of Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijani armed forces have taken counter-offensive measures within the scope of the right of self-defense. This is in full compliance with international humanitarian law.
On October 2, local time, the Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement saying that Armenia adheres to the peaceful settlement of the conflict in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, and at the same time firmly opposes any "acts of aggression" and is willing to cooperate with the co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group to restore the ceasefire mechanism established between 1994 and 1995. This seems to send a signal to cool the situation.
Azerbaijan's ambassador to China, Akram Jenali, also gave a written interview to Phoenix Weekly about the conflict, expressing the azerbaijani position on the causes of the fierce exchange of fire between the two sides, the direction of the situation and how to solve the problem.
Ambassador of Azerbaijan to China Akram Jenali
Phoenix Weekly: Azerbaijan and Armenia erupted in a new round of clashes in the Nagorno-Karabakh region on September 27, with both sides accusing each other of violating the ceasefire agreement and taking the lead in launching a military offensive. What is the truth of the cause of the matter? What are the current losses in Azerbaijan?
Jenali: On September 27, 2020, Armenia launched an armed offensive against Azerbaijan in its illegally occupied territories, prompting a military provocation. The Armenian attacks caused heavy casualties among Azerbaijani personnel, including civilians and military personnel. This is yet another concrete manifestation of Armenian terrorism. At present, the Azerbaijani army has had to launch a counter-offensive against Armenia in order to protect its own citizens living on the front lines.
The truth of this incident is based on the fact that the territory of Azerbaijan, which has been recognized by the international community, has been illegally occupied by Armenia. The territory of Azerbaijan, including Nagorno-Karabakh and 7 regions around Nagorno-Karabakh, has been occupied by Armenian troops for almost 30 years. Millions of refugees in Azerbaijan have been forced to leave their homeland.
The international community does not recognize the emergence of the "Nagorno-Karabakh Republic" in the azerbaijani territories occupied by Armenia and unanimously recognizes the Nagorno-Karabakh region as an integral part of the territory of Azerbaijan. The fact of aggression unilaterally caused by Armenia is a serious violation of the norms, principles and relevant practices of international law, international humanitarian law, the Geneva Conventions (1949). This attack was a provocative act by the Armenian leadership to sabotage peace talks.
These include the armed attacks on Tovuz, not far from the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, on 12-16 July this year, the sabotage of reconnaissance groups in the direction of Goranboy on 23 August, the continuation of the illegal policy of occupancy in the occupied Territories of Azerbaijan, and the forced relocation of Armenians from Lebanon to the Azerbaijani territories occupied by Armenians.
Regrettably, the Armenian armed forces have suffered heavy casualties among innocent civilians in Azerbaijan because they have mainly targeted settlements. As the Armenian army opened fire with large-caliber artillery, a family of five in the city of Naftalan was hit and 2 students in the family were killed. According to official Azerbaijani statistics, as of October 2, a total of 19 Azerbaijani civilians had been killed, 55 civilians had been injured, and a total of 175 civilian facilities had been destroyed. There is no official information on military casualty data.
Phoenix Weekly: Since July 12, the situation on the border between Azerbaijan and Armenia has begun to deteriorate sharply, and this new round of crisis has aroused the concern of the international community.
Jenali: This is from the perspective of the larger context, after Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan came to power in 2018, he sent some signals to the Azerbaijani side that there is a willingness to start negotiations on a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
But in the past 2 years, the Armenian government has been unable to deal with the current economic problems and, in the context of this continued tension, has issued provocative statements about the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Pashinyan said that "Karabakh is the terminator of Armenia"; Armenian Defense Minister David Tonoyan called it "a new struggle for new territories"; the prime minister's wife also promoted the active participation of local women in military exercises in the Nagorno-Karabakh region and fired sniper rifles in the direction of Azerbaijan, immigrating Armenians living in Lebanon to the ancient azerbaijani city of Shusha, etc., These acts represent Armenia's effective rejection of the peace talks coordinated by the Minsk Group of the Council for Security and Cooperation in Europe and reaffirm their intention to maintain the status quo.
On 12 July, Armenia opened fire on the side of Tovuz, far from the Nagorno-Karabakh region and on the border between the two countries. The aim is to force Azerbaijan to cut off the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline and the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway from China to Europe. In addition, a third party is forced to intervene in the conflict.
It is clear that the main objective of the Armenian aggression is to continue to strike and force Azerbaijan to secede part of its territory and to occupy and control it by Armenia. Since the settlements near the sub-directional war zone were constantly firing at us, we also increased our firepower.
Phoenix Weekly: Azerbaijani President Aliyev signed a decree on September 27 declaring the country into a state of war, will there be a risk that the military conflict will spiral out of control?
Jenali: Please don't get me wrong with Azerbaijan's response. In fact, Azerbaijan's counterpart military operations were in fact resisting enemy invasions on its own territory, so there was a reason to mobilize all the resources of the country.
We would like to stress once again that all military operations are carried out in the territory of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan does not covet the territory of other countries. International law has given Azerbaijan the right to liberate its own lands occupied by Armenia. We are confident that the nations of the world, which uphold the principles of fairness and justice and international law, will understand and support Azerbaijan's will to maintain its territorial integrity.
Phoenix Weekly: The two sides have been deadlocked in peace talks for many years, is there no longer a possibility of negotiating a solution?
Jenali: Azerbaijan is a peace-loving country that supports the settlement of conflicts based on the unintended charter and the norms and principles of international law, especially with regard to territorial integrity, sovereignty and the principle of inviolability of internationally recognized borders, as well as on the basis of relevant UN Security Council resolutions. This position remains unchanged. We are always ready to negotiate.
However, Azerbaijan opposes modalities and supports constructive, fair and substantive negotiations. Azerbaijan has a single and firm position in the settlement of the conflict. The Armenian armed forces must immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw from the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan and the areas around it, and Azerbaijani refugees must return to their ancestral lands.
I should emphasize that in 1993 the United Nations Security Council adopted four resolutions on the conflict, namely Resolutions Nos. 822, 853, 874 and 884. The relevant resolutions call for the immediate, unconditional and complete withdrawal of the Armenian armed forces from occupied Nagorno-Karabakh and its environs in Azerbaijan.
Phoenix Weekly: Turkey has already expressed its support for Azerbaijan, what is your response?
Jenali: It is important to point out here that not only Turkey, but also the international community, including Pakistan, Afghanistan, Ukraine and many other countries, has expressed its full support for Azerbaijan's just position. Focusing solely on Turkey is in fact an unfair practice and a disrespect for the relevant international organizations and their decisions. I believe that placing the occupier and the occupied on the same scale and trying to remain neutral on this issue is an indirect support for Armenia's aggressive policy.
I believe that placing the occupier and the occupied on the same scale and trying to remain neutral on this issue is an indirect support for Armenia's aggressive policy. Therefore, in order to prevent the recurrence of similar situations, each country should express its firm position and not ignore Azerbaijan.
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