"Turkiye's strong support to Azerbaijan during the 44-day Patriotic War made it possible to liberate the historical lands of Azerbaijan from the Armenian occupation and removed the shameful stain of the Boraltan tragedy of 1944 from the conscience of our country. At that time, Ankara handed over a group of brotherly Azerbaijanis to the Soviet authorities, and they were immediately shot."

Azernews reports, citing Azertag that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said this at a briefing held in Ankara based on the results of the government meeting.

President Erdogan called the shooting of 176 Azerbaijanis a tragedy and said that the Republican People's Party of Turkiye (CHP), which was in power at that time, was to blame for this tragedy.

"Our people have carried the pain of the Boraltan tragedy in their hearts for 76 years. The 30-year Armenian occupation of Garabagh has already ended, and the people of Turkiye have been saved from the stain of the Boraltan tragedy. We cannot allow the repetition of such events," said the politician.