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Rrestoration of Azerbaijan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity created substantially new environment in the South Caucasus - FM

29 September 2024 03:00 (UTC +04:00)

The end of armed conflict with Armenia and restoration of Azerbaijan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity created substantially new environment in the South Caucasus. For the first time since decades, stability has been achieved on the ground, de-facto peace is established, said Minister of Foreign Affairs Jeyhun Bayramov in his speech in the General Debate of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, APA reports.

By putting an end to military occupation, it is Azerbaijan that created conditions, for both parties to eventually turn the page of enmity and embark on good-neighbourly relations.

This process was launched by Azerbaijan in the immediate aftermath of its victory in the 44-Day Patriotic War.

This offer was made despite unhealed wounds of the conflict still persist to date in the form of razing to the ground of dozens of cities and hundreds of towns and villages, destruction and desecration of each and every piece of historical and cultural heritage and barbaric pillage of natural resources.

Azerbaijan demonstrated political wisdom and will by offering Armenia peace on equal terms, fully in line with norms and principles of international law, on the basis of mutual recognition of and respect for each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Over the past year, Azerbaijan and Armenia have registered significant progress in the normalization process through direct bilateral negotiations, in particular with respect to drafting a bilateral agreement, delimitation and demarcation of state border, as well as elaboration of a set of confidence-building measures.

Azerbaijan will continue to take this process forward acting with strong sense of responsibility for not only its national security and well-being, but also for ensuring a better future for entire region. Our commitment and determination remain intact to bring this process to its logical conclusion.

For the finalization of the normalization process, Armenia has yet to legally abandon territorial claims against Azerbaijan once and for all through implementing constitutional amendments. Armenia’s negligence with respect to implementation of constitutional amendments combined with dramatic increase in military budget, acquisition of large amount of offensive weaponry from both traditional and new suppliers and attempts to maintain obsolete conflict-driven narratives and structures, derails the normalization process.

Establishment of peace and good-neighbourly relations cannot be sustainable and irreversible if recognition of sovereignty and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan remains in legal limbo, is contingent on domestic legal or political scenarios. “Partial peace” is not an option after so much pain and sufferings inflicted by irredentism and territorial claims against neighbours.

At this critical moment Azerbaijan calls for expeditious steps to address remaining impediments for finalization of the normalization process with full sense of responsibility.

Along with Armenia’s responsibility to honour its international obligations and previously undertaken commitments, it is also incumbent on entire international community to encourage the sides for the establishment of genuine, sustainable and irreversible peace. Such a peace should outweigh any dividend that might be expected by manipulating one side against other or building dividing lines between them. Practices that brought devastations in other parts of the globe must be ceased to be projected to the South Caucasus by feeding revanchism.