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MP: Armenia’s culturocide against Azerbaijanis continues

Tural Ganjaliyev, a member of the Milli Majlis (Azerbaijani Parliament)

22 April 2026 16:06 (UTC +04:00)

Armenia’s crimes against Azerbaijanis, characterized as cultural genocide, i.e. “culturocide,” are not limited only to the period of war, Tural Ganjaliyev, a member of the Milli Majlis (Azerbaijani Parliament), said in a statement to APA.

The MP said that this policy has, over many years, been accompanied by the destruction of the cultural heritage of Azerbaijanis who lived both in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan – Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur, as well as in the territory of present-day Armenia, and the erasure of their traces. This approach has, in fact, become one of the main directions of Armenia’s ideological line:

“Unfortunately, although the war has ended, despite the positive atmosphere formed in the post-conflict period and Azerbaijan’s promotion of a peace agenda, Armenia has neither apologized for these crimes nor undertaken any obligation. Whereas, at the very least, an apology and guarantees that such cases will not be repeated in the future were expected. However, the issue should not end with this; concrete steps should have been taken for the restoration of the destroyed cultural heritage. Armenia should have taken the initiative in this direction, and even if it could not do it itself, it should have involved the Azerbaijani side in the process.

The reality is that we have not seen any of these steps. On the contrary, the policy of cultural genocide committed against Azerbaijanis continues. For example, only the Blue Mosque remains in Yerevan, but the fact that this mosque is presented not as a monument belonging to Azerbaijani culture, but as an example of another culture, shows that this policy continues. This is a clear example of the distortion and appropriation of cultural heritage.”

The MP noted that in general, Armenia’s policy should be assessed not only as a crime against the Azerbaijani people, but as a crime against humanity, world cultural heritage, and civilization as a whole:

“International law and conventions also recognize the destruction of cultural heritage as a crime not only against individual states, but against universal values. In this regard, the 1954 Hague Convention defines the protection of cultural property as an international obligation. Despite this, we have witnessed that Armenians have been engaged not only in falsifying the culture and history of Azerbaijanis in modern times, but also in activities aimed at erasing traces of ancient civilizations. In particular, the appropriation of Albanian temples and the Armenization of ancient Christian heritage are part of this policy. No apology has been made, nor has any step been taken regarding these issues.

These facts show that Armenia’s policy is directed not only against the Azerbaijani, Turkic, and Muslim heritage, but also against Azerbaijan’s ancient Christian heritage. This clearly demonstrates how destructive and anti-cultural the occupation policy is. Unfortunately, no progress has been observed in this area after the war either. On the contrary, revanchist forces openly support this policy and turn the erasure of Azerbaijanis’ traces into an ideological line.”

Tural Ganjaliyev believes that another worrying point is the selective approach of some European circles to these issues: “For example, forces that adopt biased resolutions against Azerbaijan in the parliaments of Belgium and the Netherlands turn a blind eye to these facts and remain silent on the destruction of cultural heritage. The fact that circles acting as defenders of Christian heritage do not react to the appropriation and falsification of Albanian temples raises serious questions. Such double standards further encourage Armenia and give additional stimulus to revanchist forces. Therefore, in order to prevent such threats in the future, a decisive position must be demonstrated.

Revanchist forces must not be allowed to regain strength, arm themselves, and create new threats in the region. Because if these forces are ready to erase the cultural heritage of Azerbaijanis from the face of the earth, if they have the opportunity, they may commit even more serious crimes. Therefore, preventing such tendencies is of vital importance both in terms of regional security and the protection of universal values.”