President seeks UN support for Azerbaijan [UPDATE]

By Azernews

By Ayya Lmahamad

President Ilham Aliyev has expressed hope that the UN will support Azerbaijan through its institutions and communication channels.

He made the remarks while receiving United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) Executive Director Maimunah Mohd Sharif on March 5.

“We hope that the UN will support us through its institutions and communication channels, which will convey the important message that Azerbaijan needs support. We view your visit as a sign of this support. I am sure you will report on what you have seen there. Because it is one thing when you hear, know or read about something, and coming and seeing everything with your own eyes is another,” he said.

Noting that the reconstruction of liberated lands is underway, the president underlined that so far, the country has not received a single dollar of assistance from international organizations or any country in the world.

He stressed that Azerbaijan is doing all this work, and will continue to do so at the country’s own expense.

“But, of course, it is rather strange that almost a year and a half has passed since the liberation of the lands, but no one is ready to help us. Just words, nothing else. There are no ideas of any donor conferences or financial support,” he said.

The president noted that even well-known non-governmental organizations and well-known international foundations are turning a blind eye to what is happening in Karabakh and Zangazur.

“This is unfortunate. You know, we will restore the territories. As I said, we will create a paradise on earth in Karabakh and Zangazur. We will do it at any cost. However, I think that this indifference of international organizations, donor organizations and large foundations is completely unacceptable,” he said.

Armenian barbarism

Aliyev highlighted that it is important to inform the world about Armenian barbarism.

“Of course, there is the issue of compensation. We demand compensation. We have already involved international institutions and legal groups to help us raise this issue in the international arena,” he added.

He noted that currently, it is not possible to return former IDPs to the liberated areas due to landmines. The president recalled that so far, more than  200 people have been killed or seriously injured by landmines.

“Clearing these areas of mines requires great experience and technical capacity. We must also create decent conditions for people to be able to return there, and the process has begun,” he said.

The president also stated that the way Azerbaijan will restore the territory the size of Lebanon will be a good example for other countries suffering from occupation, destruction and other serious problems.

“I am sure we can be an example for all other countries that have faced or are still facing the same problems as us,” he said.

Scale of destructions

Recalling that the delegation has visited liberated Aghdam region and seen the scale of destruction there with their own eyes, the president underlined that the situation is the same in all liberated territories.

“Everything has been destroyed. As a result of this vandalism and barbarism, there is no Aghdam now. The city, which used to be home to tens of thousands of people, now lies in ruins,” he said.

Stressing that this was committed by the Armenians, the Armenian criminal regime during the years of occupation, he noted that for almost 30 years, the country’s cities, villages, historical and religious sites had been deliberately and systematically destroyed in order to erase the traces of Azerbaijani culture and history.

“However, the war for the freedom of our lands has shown that sooner or later justice will prevail. One needs to be patient. At the same time, we need to work hard on a daily basis to be loyal to the country and achieve our goals. Our war was a war of liberation. We have put an end to the occupation. We have put an end to the evil forces in our land,” he said.

Aliyev also recalled that Armenians also insulted and destroyed Azerbaijan’s religious sites. He noted that 65 mosques were completely destroyed, while the remaining two mosques were used for keeping pigs and cows, which was an insult to the feelings of Muslims around the world.

No sanctions imposed on Armenia

“Unfortunately, during all these years of occupation, the international community remained tight-lipped,” he said.

The president mentioned that despite the decisions and resolutions adopted by the UN Security Council, the General Assembly and other important international organizations in support of Azerbaijan’s position, there was no serious pressure on Armenia.

“No sanctions were imposed on Armenia. Some countries even tried to put the aggressor and the victim of the aggression on the same scale. These were the main reasons why the Armenians kept these territories under their control for such a long time,” he said.

Aliyev underlined that if Azerbaijan hadn’t shown courage, patriotism and strength, this occupation would have been continued. He added that it seems that the international organizations themselves had already adapted to the situation.

“Like some kind of a tourist group, the Minsk Group visited us several times a year to conduct meaningless negotiations. Now it is obvious that these talks were only intended to disguise Armenia’s attempts at reinforcing the consequences of the occupation. Armenians had changed the names of our cities and villages. Armenians did their best for this occupation to be forgotten in the world,” he said.

“But the Azerbaijani people had not forgotten that. None of us had forgotten that. We were all ready to sacrifice our lives to liberate our historical homeland, and it happened,” he added.