Azerbaijan’s lightning offensive in the separatist Armenian enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh ‘achieved the set goals,’ Azerbaijan’s foreign minister told the UN General Assembly.
Azerbaijan took control of the Nagorno-Karabakh region after a two-day military operation last Tuesday.
“The counter-terror measures taken by Azerbaijan achieve the set goals. Armenia and its subordinate legal regime were forced to agree to disarm, disband all illegal structures and withdraw from Azerbaijan”, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jayhun Bayramov said.
The ethnic Armenian leadership of breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh said on Saturday that the terms of their ceasefire with Azerbaijan were being implemented, with work proceeding on the delivery of humanitarian aid and evacuation of the wounded.
Earlier, the Karabakh Armenians held another round of talks with Azerbaijani officials in the town of Shusha, three days after the ceasefire that followed a lightning 24-hour offensive in which Baku retook control of the mountainous region.
Work is underway to restore electricity supplies by Sept. 24, the Karabakh Armenians said in a statement which also referred to “political consultations” on the future of the region, which they call Artsakh, and its 120,000 Armenian residents.
Russia’s defence ministry said that, under the terms of the ceasefire, the Armenian separatists had begun handing over their weapons to Azerbaijan, including more than 800 guns and six armoured vehicles. Moscow has 2,000 peacekeepers in the area.
Azerbaijan wants to integrate the long-contested region of Karabakh and has promised to protect the Armenians’ rights but says they are free to leave if they prefer. Armenians say they fear they will be persecuted if they stay.
“We are committed to international rules and constructive dialogue. Azerbaijan is committed to peace, stability and security in the region.”
It should be noted that Armenia and Azerbaijan had a dispute over the Karabakh region for several decades, but after Azerbaijan’s military operation, Baku took control of this region.
Armenia and Azerbaijan agreed on a ceasefire after negotiations with the mediation of Russia.
Azerbaijan called the ceasefire a major victory and announced that its country has exercised its sovereignty over the region for the first time in decades.
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