The end of the Armenian occupation in the Karabakh region is not only important because Azerbaijan regained its lands and displaced can return but also for regional peace and stability, Deputy Foreign Minister Yavuz Selim Kıran said Wednesday.
At a conference on the occasion of the first anniversary of the Shusha Declaration signed between Turkey and Azerbaijan, Kıran said: “The ending of the occupation does not only mean Azerbaijan rejoining its lands, only our displaced brothers returning to their homes but at the same time presents a valuable opportunity for our region to turn into a belt of peace and stability on a large scale.”
Raising relations between Turkey and Azerbaijan to the level of an alliance, the Shusha declaration was inked in a ceremony attended by the two countries' presidents in the Azerbaijani city of Shusha. The Shusha Declaration focuses on defense cooperation and establishing new transportation routes, affirming the two armies' joint efforts in the face of foreign threats, and the restructuring and modernization of their armed forces.
“While realizing this success, it is clear that the international community must rethink some issues. In fact, the end of the occupation in Karabakh could be the result of diplomacy failing. Because for years, the United Nations in ignoring their own decisions as well as the OSCE Minsk Group established for the solution of this problem, encouraged no solution but rather the continuation of the status quo,” Kıran underlined indicating that for years these institutions have not facilitated a way out of the dispute between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
“President (Ilham) Aliyev seeing that these diplomatic efforts do not bear fruits and gaining this success in 44 days is a milestone.”
Turkey was a key backer of Azerbaijan during the 44-day Karabakh war between Baku and Yerevan, which erupted on Sept. 27, 2020, and ended with a Russian-brokered cease-fire on Nov. 10. During the faceoff that started in September 2020, Azerbaijan liberated several cities and 300 settlements and villages that were occupied by Armenia for nearly three decades. The peace agreement is celebrated as a triumph in Azerbaijan.
After the conflict ended, Azerbaijan launched a massive reconstruction initiative in the liberated Karabakh region.
Speaking on joint projects between Turkey and Azerbaijan, Kıran added: "With the capacity, we displayed on the table and on the field, we try to put into effect even greater steps through diplomacy to turn this victory into welfare for the region’s people, one step of which is the 3+3 platform." Kıran was referring to the six-nation platform comprising of Turkey, Russia, Iran, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia for permanent peace, stability and cooperation in the region, which Ankara has been calling for and seeing as a win-win initiative for all regional actors in the Caucasus.