PEOPLE SPEAKING OF AZERBAIJAN’S TERRITORIAL INTEGRITY WISH TO RETURN SOVIET REALITY

PanARMENIAN.Net
15.03.2006 19:28 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ There are no controlled or occupied territories in
Karabakh. There is the NKR integrity within its present borders. As
for the statements on Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity, their
authors should clarify which Azerbaijan they are talking about,
lieutenant general Vitaliy Balasanyan stated in an interview with
Karabakh-online. In his words, history counts at least three periods
of the Azeri-Karabakh relations: pre-revolutionary, soviet and post
soviet. “During the first and third periods Karabakh was not a part
of Azerbaijan. It was during the short soviet period only. Thus,
the people speaking of Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity wish to
return the soviet reality,” he noted.

At that he reminded that Azerbaijan twice waged war against Nagorno
Karabakh. “In 1988 when NK Autonomous Region was a part of Azerbaijani
SSR the Azeri authorities organized carnage in Sumgait, Baku and other
towns. They also carried out “Ring” punitive operation in Nagorno
Karabakh. It was a war against own citizens. After the collapse
of the USSR Azerbaijan levied war on independent Karabakh. The
war was conducted on Karabakh’s territory and we had to defend,”
Balasanyan said. He reminded that the NKR armed forces neutralized
weapon emplacements and took under control the territories called
Karabakh. “Today Azerbaijan is speaking of a third war while the
international community does nothing to stop the anti-Armenian
propaganda. I am convinced that first of all the international
community should give an assessment to the events that had taken
place. Those who press for the return of the Azeri refugees should
recognize that the refugee flows from both sides were caused by the
war imposed by Azerbaijan,” Vitaliy Balasanyan said.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress