ARMENIA CAN NEVER COMPETE WITH AZERBAIJAN: AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENT
ARKA News Agency, Armenia
March 16 2006
YEREVAN, March 16. /ARKA/. Armenia will never be able to compete with
Azerbaijan, “Trend” news agency reports the Azerbaijani President
Ilham Aliyev stated this at the second congress of the world’s
Azerbaijanis. According to him, Azerbaijan intensifies its military
power year by year, and in this year the military budget amounts
to $600mln.
“I set a task that Azerbaijan’s military budget equals to Armenia’s
whole budget,” the President said. Armenia will never be able to
compete with us. The earlier the Armenian top authorities realize it,
the better it will be for them. Aliyev stated that Azerbaijan will
have to reconsider its participation in the negotiations over the
Karabakh conflict settlement, if Armenia violates the negotiation
process and does not exercise constructivism.
“The peace negotiations have lasted over 12 years, but they do
not produce any results. And it is still a question how long they
will last. We adhere to the peace process, however, when we face the
non-constructive position of Armenia, which displays insincerity, our
patience runs out. If Azerbaijan notices that the negotiation process
is of imitation character, we will refuse to participate in it,”
Aliyev said. According to him, Azerbaijan will allow Nagorno Karabakh
separate from Azerbaijan neither in 10, nor in 100 years. “Without
solving the issue of repatriation of refugees to the places of
their former habitation, no peaceful settlement will be reached,”
the President said. R.O. -0–