Author: Aram Torosian

By Akbar Mammadov

President Ilham Aliyev has said that destruction and desecration of Azerbaijan’s religious monuments by Armenia in occupied Nagorno-Karabakh and in the adjacent regions is a crime against the entire Muslim world.

Aliyev made the remarks while accepting the credentials of the newly-appointed Iranian ambassador Seyed Abbas Mousavi on September 7.

“Our historical and religious monuments have been destroyed by Armenia. Our religious monuments have been desecrated. Our mosques in the occupied territories have been destroyed by the Armenians. They even keep animals in some of the mosques. There are extensive video and photo evidence of these ugly deeds. It can be found on the Internet. This is a crime not only against us but also against the entire Muslim world,” the president said.

Aliyev reminded that around 20 per cent of Azerbaijani lands remain under Armenian occupation and Azerbaijani citizens have been forced from their homes.

Speaking about the Islamic solidarity, Aliyev said that Azerbaijan is always ready to make additional effort to unite the Islamic world and resolve the problems between some countries.

The president noted that Azerbaijan and Iran are actively involved in trilateral cooperation formats in foreign policy. He reminded that the Azerbaijan-Iran-Turkey and Azerbaijan-Iran-Russia trilateral cooperation format that has existed for several years has been very effective.

“The relations between neighbouring countries and the development of these relations are a guarantor of stability and peace in the region. The fact that the legal status of the Caspian Sea has finally been resolved shows the intention of all the Caspian littoral states, our policy and the friendship among these countries.”

Furthermore, Aliyev touched upon the bilateral relations with Iran, saying: “We have had more than 10 meetings with President Rouhani over the past few years. A number of issues discussed and decisions made during these meetings have brought our countries closer together. Many documents covering almost all areas have been signed.”

The president noted that Azerbaijan and Iran always support each other's position in international organizations such as the UN, the Non-Aligned Movement, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO).

“About two months ago, following yet another act of military aggression on the part of Armenia against Azerbaijan, the Non-Aligned Movement and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation adopted resolutions supporting the position and just cause of Azerbaijan and condemning the actions of Armenia,” Aliyev said while commenting on Armenia’s cross-border provocation in Tovuz district that killed 12 Azerbaijani servicemen and a civilian.

He pointed out that Iran as an active member of these two organizations has once again shown its support for Azerbaijan by joining this position.

“As for our bilateral relations, I want to say again that our relations are developing fast and have reached a high level. I had a telephone conversation with President Rouhani at the end of July. Many important issues were discussed and we agreed that relevant members of our governments should hold meetings via videoconferencing during this pandemic. In fact, many of these meetings have already been held. This is very important because we do not want to waste time. After all, the pandemic has interfered in our work, of course.”

Touching upon the important joint transport and energy projects, Aliyev said that hopefully, they will become even larger in the coming years.

“As you know, the North-South transport corridor can connect not only our countries but also entire Eurasia. Both Iran and Azerbaijan are making great efforts to launch and further develop this corridor.”

He noted that there are good results in all other areas – investment, power engineering and others.

“In particular, our relations in the military-technical sphere have a long history. New agreements have been reached. I am confident that our cooperation in this area will continue to develop successfully,” Aliyev said.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s statement that "the decision of the Armenian side to revive the old border checkpoint located 15 kilometers from the Azerbaijani export pipelines launched a flywheel of confrontation on the border of Azerbaijan and Armenia with the most unpredictable consequences" is the direct accusation of the Armenian government as the initiator of the conflict escalation in the direction of Azerbaijan’s Tovuz district.

Immediately after this serious accusation, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan arranged an award ceremony for the servicemen and commanders who committed a provocation on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border and, under the pretext of holding a meeting at the headquarters of the occupation army, went to the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

In fact, the visit of the head of the government to the occupied Azerbaijani territories was caused by a political situation as a result of a provocation organized by the Armenian Defense Ministry on a section of the state border near Tovuz district.

Pashinyan realizes that having little control over the Armenian Defense Ministry in Yerevan, he is practically on the verge of losing control over the Armenian Armed Forces deployed in the occupied Azerbaijani territories and the puppet "regime" created in Khankendi.

Yerevan is well aware that currently the main challenge and source of threat to the rule of Pashinyan in Armenia is the puppet Karabakh regime, whose leadership has close ties and patrons in Moscow.

The publication of the press-secretary of the so-called "President of Karabakh" Poghosyan on Facebook, where he directly addresses the natives of Nagorno-Karabakh region living in Russia, or rather to the odious "Karabakh clan", hostile to Pashinyan and his entourage, is remarkable.

Contrary to the policy of Pashinyan's "Soros’s Men" team in Armenia, the puppet regime in Nagorno-Karabakh regime is in favor of expanding the ties with Russia, in particular, by increasing the TV and radio airtime in Russian language. It is planned to increase the number of hours devoted to learning the Russian language at schools, as well as to increase the number of signs in this language in the occupied zone.

At present, two figures of the puppet "administration" are ruling in the Nagorno-Karabakh region. These are so-called President Arayik Harutyunyan and so-called Secretary of the National Security Council, criminal element Samvel Babayan. Both belong to the Moscow-oriented "Karabakh clan".

Babayan's statement that the Nagorno-Karabakh region should be transferred under the Russia’s mandate is known to everybody.

Thus, we are witnessing two antagonistic tendencies – "Rusification" in the Nagorno-Karabakh region amid the closure of the Russian TV channels in Armenia and language pressure on Russia in Yerevan.

The power that is oriented towards Russia has actually formed in the occupied territories in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, while Armenia is moving step by step in the western direction.

Despite the "allied" relations, assurances of "eternal friendship of the Armenians towards Russians", an unprecedented quantity of the Russian weapons which are supplied to Armenia for dirt cheap, the fact is that the Western influence begins to prevail over the Russian influence in this country.

In response, Moscow, with the assistance of the "Karabakh clan" and its people in Khankendi city, is trying to strengthen its influence in the region.

The activity of the puppet administration in the occupied territories actually runs counter to Yerevan’s policy. So, Pashinyan's visit to the Nagorno-Karabakh region under the pretext of a meeting at the headquarters of the occupying army is a poorly hidden attempt to keep the situation under Yerevan's control.

However, the powerful pressure of the "Karabakh clan" during the unsettled conflict with Azerbaijan determines the fact that Armenia is on the verge of losing influence in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Elkhan Alasgarov, PhD, Head of the Expert Council of the Baku Network

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