BAKU, Azerbaijan, January 8. The claims made by
the Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan at a press conference
on 8 January 2025, regarding the “Western Azerbaijan Community” and
the deportation of Azerbaijanis from the territory of present-day
Armenia in general, are a falsification of history by Armenia,
Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Aykhan Hajizada said,
Trend
reports.
“The suppression of Azerbaijanis in their historical lands along
with the massive relocation of Armenians to the South Caucasus
during the last two hundred years is a historical fact. As a result
of this step-by-step plan, Azerbaijanis were expelled from the
territory now called Armenia – from their native historical lands,
where they lived for thousands of years, and were subjected to mass
murders and massacres, thousands of historical and cultural
monuments and settlements belonging to Azerbaijanis were destroyed,
and more than 2000 toponyms were altered. Only during the years of
1948-1953, about 150 thousand Azerbaijanis were forcibly and
massively deported from their historical lands in the territory of
present-day Armenia. Furthermore, in 1987-1991, another deportation
of Azerbaijanis from their historical and ethnic lands took place,
as a result of which more than 250 thousand Azerbaijanis were
expelled from Armenia. There are historical and legal documents
proving all these actions.
The claims of the Armenian Foreign Minister that compensation
was paid to Azerbaijanis during the last deportation and that they
voluntarily left the territories are also completely unfounded. The
fact that 216 Azerbaijanis were killed as part of the ethnic
cleansing policy in 1987-1991 alone proves once again how painfully
and bloody the ethnic cleansing policy against Azerbaijanis was
carried out.
Thus, it is deceitful to present Azerbaijan’s use of the phrase
“Western Azerbaijan Community” as a “violation of international
law” and a “territorial claim.” The denial of the right of
Azerbaijanis to return to their lands by Armenian officials under
various pretexts is a vivid example of their goal of
“Armenianization” of Azerbaijani territories and preventing the
return of Azerbaijanis in every way.
The opinions expressed and policies carried out by the former
Armenian President Levon Ter-Petrosyan, who presented the presence
of Azerbaijanis in the region as a problem and stated that ethnic
cleansing against Azerbaijanis and the occupation of Azerbaijani
territories was “the solution to a 600-year-old problem,” as well
as of other succeeding Armenian leaders, have demonstrated that
racist-chauvinist national ideology has always constituted the
ideological orientation of Armenia.
Moreover, Armenia’s narrative about international law is
ludicrous, considering that even following the 2020-war they
refused to withdraw armed forces from Azerbaijan, continued its
militarization policy and illegal activities in the territories
resided by Armenians, and obstructed the process of reintegration
of Armenians.
The Armenian side, instead of trampling on the rights of
representatives of the “Western Azerbaijan Community” forcibly
evicted from their native lands in the current territory of Armenia
and preventing dialogue with them by all means, should respond to
calls of this community for dialogue with Armenia for peaceful,
dignified and safe return. The practical indicator that Armenia has
given up the concept of “ethnic incompatibility” and the “title of
a monoethnic state based on ethnic cleansing,” and has chosen
peaceful coexistence, can only be through creating conditions for
the members of the “Western Azerbaijan Community” to return to
their historical lands,” Aykhan Hajizada said.
