President Ilham Aliyev as the main factor of Azerbaijan's victories

On the eve of important dates for the country, President Ilham Aliyev usually visits the liberated territories of the country. He gets acquainted with the progress of the restoration work, meets with people returning to their homes. The head of state always keeps such issues under personal control. The restoration of the liberated areas and the return of people there is the number one strategic task of the Azerbaijani state today. Five years ago, the primary strategic goal was to restore the territorial integrity of the country. It was successfully implemented thanks to the valor of the Azerbaijani Army, the wise and resolute command of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief and the unity of the Azerbaijani people. Now it is time to return the rightful owners of this land to free Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur. And Azerbaijan, under the leadership of its President, is also coping with this task one hundred percent.    

This year, on the eve of the Novruz holiday, President Ilham Aliyev did not change this tradition and made a trip to the Agder district. During the trip, the Head of state and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva attended the opening of a residential complex in the village of Sugovushan.

At the meeting with the former internally displaced persons, the head of state made a number of important statements. In an open and sincere conversation with the villagers, he addressed the events of the Second Karabakh War and the factors that led Azerbaijan to Victory.

It should be noted that Sugovushan became one of the first strategically important settlements liberated by the Azerbaijani army. His release on October 3, 2020 was an important milestone in the victorious advance of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces towards the complete defeat of the enemy. The loss of this settlement demoralized the enemy and strengthened the centrifugal forces in the Armenian army. On the same day, by order of the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, the village, renamed by the occupiers to "Aziz", was returned to its historical name - Sugovushan.

In a conversation with the villagers, the head of state spoke about the unique example of Azerbaijan, which managed to win a real and complete victory in the Second Karabakh War, achieve its goal and consolidate this result during the anti-terrorist operation in 2023. In fact, this was the first such example in the history of twentieth-century wars, when a small country fighting for its freedom would achieve complete victory.

"Currently, wars and bloody clashes are becoming quite widespread in the world. Now, in the age of the Internet, in the period of free access to information, everyone knows, sees and can track everything. We see that not every country can ensure its interests, just interests, or fights for its territorial integrity, but does not achieve results, or achieves a small military success, but cannot win a complete victory. That is, if we just look at the clashes, conflicts, and wars taking place in the modern world, if we look at wars in recent history, I can even say that after the Second World War, no one has won such an unequivocal and complete victory as Azerbaijan. These wars either remained unfinished, or, without changing their essence, they were modified and transformed into other forms," President Ilham Aliyev said.

Moreover, no one has ever managed to win a military victory over an enemy supported by the strongest countries of the world after thirty years of occupation. Therefore, no one believed that Azerbaijan would succeed. In addition to external support, the powerful fortifications that the Armenian side had been building for almost thirty years on the occupied Azerbaijani lands also served as an obstacle. Azerbaijan won, as the head of state said, in a difficult political situation, when it was impossible to predict how the powers that had supported the occupier all the years as co-chairs of the Minsk Group would behave.

"But justice prevails when you have the will, the power, and the right. We had all these factors, so we won this historic Victory. This Victory, I repeat, has had no equal in recent decades, and it will not have after. Look, there are wars going on in different places today. These wars last a long time and, as they say, do not lead to real results. Our Victory was complete, absolute, indisputable, and the man who once said: "Karabakh is Armenia," today he says, "Karabakh is Azerbaijan!", said President Ilham Aliyev.

In the age of the Internet, it's impossible to hide the whole truth. And the correctness of the Azerbaijani leader's words is undoubtedly visible and understandable to everyone. No special evidence is required, just keep up to date with the news. Indeed, peace did not come after the Second World War. Permanent wars and conflicts broke out here and there, most often due to the fault of the same powers that set the rules for the post-war world. The Soviet Union's intervention in Afghanistan resulted in even greater radicalization and a slide into the Middle Ages of this country, and after the intervention of the United States, or, as they say, the coalition, stability and peace in Afghanistan could have been forgotten. The situation in this war-torn country is still hanging by a thread. Have any of the powers achieved their goals? No. The same States failed to win an unequivocal victory in Vietnam, Korea, and Iraq. In all cases, the Power and its allies were forced to withdraw, leaving behind destruction and civilian casualties. Today, the Russian-Ukrainian and Palestinian-Israeli conflicts are developing before the eyes of the whole world. And everyone already understands that neither side will achieve a complete victory in any of them. The best way out here would be to establish peace as soon as possible, because thousands and thousands of victims have already become the price for the rash steps of politicians.

The uniqueness of the military operations conducted by Azerbaijan lies in the fact that they were clearly thought out, fast and effective. The Hadrut and Shusha operations have already entered the history of wars. Hadrut was released on October 9, and Shusha was released on November 8, 2020.

The Hadruth operation

Among the operations carried out during the Second Karabakh War, the Hadrut operation is of particular importance, both from a military and strategic point of view. The heights surrounding the village allowed the enemy to control a vast territory, so it was not easy to take the village. The surprise factor played a role. Azerbaijan has shown a clear strategy in this war and the army leadership has well-developed tactical plans. As President Ilham Aliyev noted in his speech in Hadrut on the first anniversary of the Hadrut operation, the Armenian military leadership did not expect that after Jabrayil we would go in this direction. "They believed that we would move in the Fuzuli direction. Although their large manpower was stationed in Hadrut, they did not expect us, because from a military point of view, the capture of Hadrut really required a lot of dedication and professionalism," the President said.

During the Hadrut operation, another feature of Azerbaijan's conduct of military operations, which can be called unique, also manifested itself. The operation was carried out with minimal losses among the personnel of our units and with maximum care for the local civilian population.

The liberation of Hadrut was also important because it opened the way to Shusha. The liberation of this village created the conditions for the liberation of the heart of Azerbaijani Karabakh. Commenting on the Day earlier.Az the significance of the Hadrut operation, military expert, reserve colonel Shair Ramaldanov stressed that it was so great that the Armenian military and political leadership could not recover even a few days after its successful completion. The direction to Hadruth was not chosen by chance. The enemy did not expect that we would go to Hadrut after Jabrayil. The Armenians were waiting for us in the direction of Fuzuli, but it was decided to go to Hadrut. The enemy himself admits that they expected an attack on Shusha from two directions - from Lachin and Krasny Bazar. But our Armed Forces opened the way to Shusha through Hadrut, despite all the difficulties of this route. "The decision to conduct the Hadrut operation was made by the Supreme Commander of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces," the military expert stressed.

The Shusha operation

As for the Shusha operation, it is being studied in military institutes in many countries. It was a unique operation in all respects.

Speaking at the military parade in Khankendi in 2023 on the occasion of Victory Day on November 8, President Ilham Aliyev said: "Of course, the Shusha operation occupies a special place during the 44-day Patriotic War. Because the liberation of the city of Shusha, located in very difficult geographical conditions, which was considered an impregnable fortress, with light weapons, in many cases required great strength, professionalism and dedication in hand-to-hand combat. The sons of Azerbaijan have demonstrated this."

Foreign military experts still cannot understand how the Azerbaijani special forces managed to carry out an almost impossible operation. After all, they had to overcome snow-covered forests and steep slopes on foot and take the city without carrying any serious weapons. No one believed that it was possible. Just before the liberation of the city, various experts with intelligent faces claimed, citing "reliable sources," that the Azerbaijani army would never take Shusha. When the Azerbaijani flag was raised over the city and the Supreme Commander-in-Chief announced the liberation of Shusha, it caused shock and disorientation for many.

The Shusha operation completely destroyed all the myths created by the Armenian side, which tried to convince that Turks, mercenaries, drones, anyone but an Azerbaijani soldier were fighting for Azerbaijan. In fact, the Azerbaijani people are grateful only to their soldier for liberating the heart of Karabakh. Shusha was defended by several Armenian detachments, including a special forces detachment, with a total strength, according to some sources, of 5-6 thousand personnel. Only about 400 Azerbaijani special forces participated in the liberation of the city. Even after taking the city and destroying the enemy's vastly superior forces, our soldiers held out for several more days behind the walls of the Shusha fortress.

Anti-terrorist operation

The Azerbaijani army demonstrated the same high professionalism during the anti-terrorist operation on September 19, 2023. Despite the defeat of the Armenian Armed Forces in the 44-day war, the Armenian illegal armed groups were doing very well in the area of responsibility of the Russian peacekeeping contingent. During the period after the Victory and until September 2023, they created 500 posts along the entire perimeter of the RMK zone and completely mined the approaches to them. Contrary to the terms of the Trilateral Statement of November 10, 2020, Armenia continued to maintain and even replenish its group of up to 20,000 terrorists in the territories of Azerbaijan. Nevertheless, the Azerbaijani side solved all the problems in a day.

Unprecedented humanism

Here we should return once again to the topic of humanism. During the 44-day war, the army was given a tough task by its supreme leadership to avoid casualties among the Armenian civilian population. Azerbaijani artillery and drones carried out only pinpoint strikes on enemy positions, on headquarters and armaments depots, on enemy military equipment. Not a single strike was carried out on civilian targets. Everything that was said and written by the Armenian side and its fans was fiction.

Especially the "gentlemanliness" of the Azerbaijani army was clearly visible to everyone during the one-day anti-terrorist operation. This operation did not come as a big surprise to the Armenians, because even before it began, the civilian population of the RMK area of responsibility was strongly and repeatedly warned through loudspeakers and leaflets about the need to stay away from military installations that are a legitimate target for the Azerbaijani Armed Forces. Civilian facilities were practically not damaged during the operation. Armenian propaganda is trying to prove the existence of "huge casualties" among civilians and "incredible" destruction, which in fact did not happen. The "evidentiary facts" with which defenders of the Armenian people are trying to frighten the Azerbaijani side do not exist in reality.

If we recall what the Armenians did to peaceful Azerbaijanis during the First Karabakh War and occupation, if we recall the brutal ethnic cleansing of the Azerbaijani population of Armenia, then we must admit that the humanism of the Azerbaijani army is truly unprecedented. This has never happened in the history of wars and is unlikely to happen in the future. It is enough to pay attention to the streams of innocent blood being shed by all sides in the Russian-Ukrainian and Palestinian-Israeli conflicts.

According to the degree of humanism and adherence to the rules of war laid down in various conventions, the Azerbaijani army should go down in history. We see what is happening in the world today, what methods the warring parties are trying to gain an advantage. Humanity and honor have no place in these conflicts. Thousands upon thousands of innocent victims stained the pavements of bombed cities with their blood. And there is no end in sight to the bloodshed. The participants in these conflicts learned from the 44-day Patriotic War of Azerbaijan the methods of warfare of the 21st century, but missed the most important thing - the ability of Azerbaijani soldiers to remain human. This is probably the hardest thing to learn.

Addressing the people after the barbaric shelling of Ganja by Armenians on October 17, 2020, President Ilham Aliyev said: "We are responding to them on the battlefield, we are taking revenge and we will avenge these innocent people on the battlefield. We have never fought, we have not fought and we will not fight against the civilian population. We are not Armenians."

While in Sugovushan on March 18 and meeting with the residents, President Ilham Aliyev repeated this thought, stressing that we took revenge on the battlefield: "Unlike them, we did not commit any undignified actions against the civilian population, we mobilized our forces only to destroy the Armenian army."

No one tells us what to do.

There is another very important point that makes the situation created by Azerbaijan unique. Azerbaijan not only defeated the enemy on the battlefield, but also managed to bring the criminals to a fair trial on its own, without outside help and support. It should be recalled that the punishment of Nazi criminals was the result of international efforts, as well as the whole of Europe participated in bringing the perpetrators to justice after the war in the former Yugoslavia. Only Azerbaijan managed without outside help. And this, apparently, is very disliked by those who wanted to interfere in the process and somehow influence it.

In 2020, there were many who wanted to stop Azerbaijan and prevent it from restoring its integrity. Various advisers wanted to tell Baku how to act. But he did not allow the victory to be taken away from the Azerbaijani people. No pressure during the 44-day war, nor in the post-war period, and especially after the anti-terrorist operation in 2023, could affect the will of the republic's leadership and the mood of its public. Because that's how it should be in an independent country.

Independence is not just an entry in the Constitution. A country becomes truly independent when it is independent in decision-making. True independence gives strength. It is not only a powerful army that determines the strength of a state. Azerbaijan has both - genuine sovereignty and a strong army. And most importantly, he has a strong leader who knows what needs to be done, how and when.. 

The factor of President Ilham Aliyev as the leader of the state and the rallying of society and the army around him is the trinity that underlies all our victories. And yesterday's, and today's, and those that still await Azerbaijan ahead.