Assistant to the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan – Head of the Department of Foreign Policy Affairs of the Presidential Administration, Hikmet Hajiyev gave an interview to the German newspaper “Berliner Zeitung”.
Publika.az He presents the interview with reference to AZERTAC:
– Mr. Hajiyev, according to the information provided by “Reuters” agency on December 19, you said that the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan ended after 35 years. Azerbaijan is currently implementing the strategy of “ensuring peace”. It was also stated that signing a peace agreement is not difficult. When can the peace agreement with Armenia be signed realistically?
– After the end of the Second Karabakh War in 2020, it is Azerbaijan that, in accordance with the universally recognized norms of international law, presented five basic principles with Armenia, which include mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual confirmation of the absence of territorial claims against each other, and the establishment of diplomatic relations. acted as the initiator of peace negotiations.
Azerbaijan is conducting friendly negotiations with Armenia in various places to achieve the long-awaited peace in the region. We truly believe that there is a historic opportunity for the signing of a peace agreement, and we must not miss this opportunity. Significant progress has been made on the text of the peace agreement, but several issues remain to be resolved.
Recently, both countries managed to surprise the world with their positive agenda. I refer to the important joint statement issued by the Administration of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Office of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia on December 7. As a result, 34 servicemen were mutually released within the framework of the exchange agreement. In addition, Azerbaijan supported Armenia’s candidacy to become a member of the Bureau of the COP from the Eastern European Group, and Armenia supported Azerbaijan’s candidacy to host COP29. This shows that Azerbaijan and Armenia are capable of direct bilateral negotiations without intermediaries.
– If the agenda is so positive, when do you realistically expect the peace agreement to be signed?
– After the anti-terrorist measures held on September 19-20 and the full restoration of Azerbaijan’s sovereignty, the Karabakh issue, which is the main source of tension between Azerbaijan and Armenia, was completely removed from the agenda. Thus, at the moment, we do not see a serious obstacle to the conclusion of a peace agreement. We are now witnessing the calmest days between the two countries in the last 30 years. Since both armies returned to their barracks, there has not even been a skirmish. Recently, the unofficial meeting between the President of Azerbaijan and the Prime Minister of Armenia in St. Petersburg was also successful. But it is difficult to talk about a specific date, because further negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan are still needed to finalize the process. To be honest, I don’t think it would be right to set any timeline and work within a limited time frame.
– Are both countries ready to conclude a peace agreement without border demarcation and final settlement of the Zangezur corridor?
– Border delimitation is a technical and time-consuming long process, while the peace agreement is not difficult and is simply based on the mutual acceptance of norms and principles of international law in interstate relations. In our opinion, the peace agreement should not depend on the delimitation of the border.
Although the peace agreement and border delimitation and demarcation negotiations are going on in parallel, they are being conducted in two different formats. So far, the delimitation commissions of both countries have held five meetings to discuss the basics of the process. The last meeting took place in November of this year at the Azerbaijan-Armenia border. During this meeting, the parties agreed to start the coordination work on the draft Regulation on the joint activity of the commission on border security and demarcation of the state border between Armenia and Azerbaijan and to intensify the meetings between the commissions. We also consider this agreement as a positive sign, not least because it was reached in a bilateral format.
– On December 6, President Aliyev called for “easy transportation” from Azerbaijan to the Nakhchivan enclave. There should be no “checks and interventions”. This is the legitimate right of Azerbaijan. Does this mean transport links without customs and border controls? The provision that this claim is a legitimate right of Azerbaijan refers to which provision of the international law in force?
– The Nakhchivan region of Azerbaijan has been under blockade for 30 years. In the tripartite statement dated November 10, 2020, Armenia undertook to guarantee the safety of transport links between the western regions of the Republic of Azerbaijan and its Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic in order to organize the unhindered movement of citizens, vehicles and cargo in both directions. President Ilham Aliyev referred to this commitment.
Azerbaijan is interested in establishing the necessary relationship with Nakhchivan, but Armenia has been blocking this process for three years despite its commitment. Therefore, Azerbaijan has already reached an agreement with Iran on an alternative route through its territory. We do not intend to wait for the Armenian side to be ready to fulfill its obligation and use every opportunity to diversify our communication routes.
– You are referring to Article 9 of the Declaration signed between Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia: “The Republic of Armenia guarantees the safety of transport links between the western regions of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Autonomous Republic of Nakhchivan in order to organize the unhindered movement of citizens, vehicles and cargo in both directions.” Does Azerbaijan interpret this article in such a way that Armenia will refuse customs and border control?
– As a short answer to your question, I say yes. That is why the document uses the phrase “unhindered” movement of passengers and cargo. This is the commitment signed by Armenia. However, it is necessary to clarify one issue that we expect goods to be released from customs and border control only when they are transported from the main part of Azerbaijan to the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. However, when the goods are transported from Azerbaijan to a third country, of course, the applied customs and border control will be provided by Armenia.
– In the referred Article 9, it is also mentioned: “Transport control is carried out by the border service authorities of the Federal Security Service of Russia. Meanwhile, Russian-Armenian relations have cooled considerably. From Azerbaijan’s point of view, is the clause in 2020 still relevant for you?
– I don’t want to comment on the Russian-Armenian relations. What I want to emphasize is that there are undeniable concrete facts. First of all, Armenia is a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization and the Eurasian Economic Union. Secondly, the borders of Armenia are guarded by the troops of the border service of the Russian Federal Security Service. The Tripartite Declaration specifically refers to the forces of the Federal Security Service. But my task here is not to speak as a defender of border troops in the region. Our concern is that we cannot leave Azerbaijani cargo and passengers at the mercy of Armenian law enforcement agencies. Our concerns are well-founded. This year, the Azerbaijani flag was burned at the weightlifting competition held in Yerevan with the participation of the Prime Minister of Armenia. There are many footages on the Internet about the brutal beating of the Azerbaijani soldier who disappeared in the foggy air in Armenia.
However, what is important is whether Armenia is really interested in this project or not. Once there is a good desire, the technical issues can be found through creative thinking. No need to invent the bicycle. The route through Armenia is Yerevan’s responsibility and they must follow it. In other words, “Pacta sunt servanda” (Agreements must be fulfilled).
International experience and humanitarian principles require Armenia to stop blocking Nakhchivan from the main part of Azerbaijan. For now, we do not see any effort from Armenia. On the contrary, Armenia, being the initiator of the “Crossroads of Peace” project, is trying to evade its obligations arising from the tripartite Declaration and falsely present itself as a party that actively supports the opening of the regional blockade. However, in reality, it is Armenia that still prevents the opening of communication in the region.
– Do you mean the old Soviet route along the Armenian-Iranian border, or the corridor located further north?
– We mean the shortest route that should be passed by the railway that was in operation during the Soviet era and even in the first years of independence of our countries, the last freight train passed through this route in 1992. Although Armenia says it is interested in restoring this rail link, they oppose the construction of a parallel highway and instead offer Azerbaijan a long, inconvenient and weather-dependent northern route. This once again demonstrates that Armenia does not want to open transport links.
– How do you intend to prevent such a transport corridor from limiting Armenia’s sovereignty and Armenia-Iran relations?
– We do not see transportation through Armenian territory as a threat to Armenia’s sovereignty or Armenia-Iran relations. Because the transport connection from Azerbaijan to Nakhchivan – through the far south of Armenia – will not affect the trade route between Armenia and Iran. The two routes intersect without interfering with each other. If the political will is there, it is always possible to find acceptable methods. The term “corridor” should not scare Armenia, as it is widely used in the context of transport routes. This transport connection will not deprive Armenia of its border with Iran. This route will not divide Armenia into two parts. Unfortunately, in this regard, we see a wide slander campaign against my country, especially in some Western media.
– Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan made a proposal to establish several east-west connections between Azerbaijan and Nakhchivan or Turkey on the territory of Armenia. What is Baku’s position on this?
– Due to the illegal occupation of the internationally recognized territories of Azerbaijan – Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur by Armenia, Armenia has been excluded from the main energy and communication projects of our region. Armenia has been isolated for many years. Within the framework of the process of normalization of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia, various projects for the opening of regional communications can be discussed. The commissioning of the transport line from the territory of Armenia to Nakhchivan will play an important role in the inclusion of Armenia in the Middle Corridor project. However, Armenia should finally clearly state what it wants.
– Is there a risk that the demand for the Zangezur corridor without customs and border control will delay the realization of the Middle Corridor? Could such a policy risk pitting stakeholders from China to Europe against Azerbaijan?
– For almost three years now, Azerbaijan has been waiting for Armenia to fulfill its obligations to ensure the transport connection with Nakhchivan. Azerbaijan has been waiting for an easy transition and we are ready to consider models like Kaliningrad. We also invited the World Customs Organization to share its know-how and standards. However, Azerbaijan never puts all its efforts in one direction, so we are working on alternative solutions in parallel. We are also working to increase the transmission capacity of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway to 5 million tons per year. Together with our Iranian partners, we are creating an alternative route to Nakhchivan, passing through Iran. In this case, Yerevan’s exclusion from the new regional communication project will depend only on its own policy.
Let me also say that the realization of the transport project through the territory of Iran does not mean that the route through Armenia is removed from the agenda. We are ready to work with Armenia in this direction. More alternatives are always better. Transport connection to Nakhchivan through Armenia will not affect its sovereignty. The hysteria around this topic is completely unfounded.
– In the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, borders have been restored within the framework of international law, but deep humanitarian wounds remain. The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) called on Azerbaijan to “create an environment of trust and material conditions” for the ethnic Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh to return, including encouraging them and creating opportunities for them. What steps does the government of Azerbaijan plan to take in response to this challenge?
– Immediately after the 23-hour anti-terrorist measures carried out by Azerbaijan against the Armenian armed forces in the Karabakh region, our country created a portal for the reintegration of the Armenian residents of Karabakh into the Azerbaijani state. This was reported in the press release of the Administration of the President of Azerbaijan, and this issue was widely covered in the regional media.
Azerbaijan is proud to note that there were no cases of violence against civilians during and after the lightning-fast anti-terrorist measures, as confirmed by the three UN missions and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Azerbaijan has demonstrated to the whole world how military operations should be conducted without harming the civilian population.
In other words, all conditions were created for the peaceful population to stay where they were. Nevertheless, the majority of Armenian residents decided to leave Karabakh. They simply do not want to live under the Azerbaijani flag and citizenship, and this has led to their decision to leave the region, mainly due to ethnic hatred against Azerbaijanis. By the way, twenty years ago, the former president of Armenia, Robert Kocharyan, spoke about “ethnic disharmony between Armenians and Azerbaijanis” in his statement at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, which you refer to. PACE officials have stated that “the Council of Europe has never heard the term “ethnic disharmony” since its inception.
Most of the Armenian residents were afraid that Azerbaijan might take revenge for what Armenians did during the First Karabakh war, but that was not our intention. Azerbaijan never targets the civilian population. Thus, Azerbaijan provided a safe passage to Armenia through the Lachin road. A very small part of the Armenian residents decided to stay in Karabakh and their needs are currently being met. The reintegration portal continues to operate.
At the same time, the denial of the right to return to hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijanis, who were massively expelled from their compact settlements in Armenia as a result of Armenia’s ethnic cleansing policy, is a disturbing moment. The Prime Minister of Armenia called them a “threat to the national security of Armenia”, which is completely unacceptable. On the one hand, declaring a “period of peace”, and on the other hand, Azerbaijani refugees who want to return to their historical homeland and live, cannot be called a “threat to the country’s national security”.
The West Azerbaijan Community, which represents Azerbaijani refugees expelled from Armenia, emphasizes that it always fully respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Armenia. Their goal is simply to return peacefully to their homeland in Armenia.
You mentioned humanitarian wounds. Indeed, the Karabakh conflict has become a tragedy for the Azerbaijani people. More than one million Azerbaijanis have become refugees and internally displaced persons. The fate of hundreds of thousands of people has been destroyed. The fate of nearly four thousand Azerbaijanis is still unknown. There are parents in Azerbaijan who bequeath to engrave the pictures of their missing sons on their tombstones as a spiritual consolation. You yourself have visited the region and seen what this occupation has turned into the cities and villages of Azerbaijan. Once flourishing cities have been completely destroyed and they no longer exist. Instead, the Armenian invaders left us a deadly legacy of over a million mines without accurate mine maps. Can you imagine that in the 21st century, Azerbaijanis become victims of mine explosions in their sovereign territories. At the moment, Azerbaijanis face a huge task, such as cleaning the territories from mines, restoring the infrastructure, creating living and working conditions, and returning the population.
Another humanitarian wound is the deliberate destruction of our cultural heritage – our monuments, mosques, cemeteries. Our mosques were used as stables for keeping pigs and cows. With this, Armenia tried to erase the traces of the Azerbaijani people.
– You said that both countries are capable of conducting productive negotiations without intermediaries. In your experience, which format is more effective: Azerbaijan-Armenia negotiations, 3+3 format with neighboring Iran, Russia and Turkey, or negotiations with the participation of the West, be it the USA or the EU?
– Each format has its advantages and it would not be correct to compare their effectiveness. Different formats at different stages have allowed us to move forward and we are grateful to all the mediators involved. The place is not important for us, the most important thing is the result. We are in favor of result-oriented negotiations. In principle, we are not against sincere mediation, but prefer direct negotiations. Today, the work on the text of the peace agreement is carried out directly between Baku and Yerevan.
