[Image: Azerbaijan MOD Twitter @wwwmodgovaz]
Baku: Azerbaijan Thursday celebrated the peace deal with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh that saw Azerbaijan reclaim much of the breakaway region along with surrounding areas.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan landed in Azerbaijan to attend the victory parade in Baku. Video footages and images released by Azerbaijan local news agencies showed Erdogan standing shoulder to shoulder with President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev.
“It is a historic day today. The Victory Parade is being held in Azadlig Square today,” said President of Azerbaijan and Victorious Commander-in-Chief Ilham Aliyev as he made a speech at the Victory Parade dedicated to the Victory in the Patriotic War, AZERTAC reported Thursday.
"We have been closely following the processes taking place in the world. We saw that international law, its norms and principles have been flagrantly violated in recent years. Some countries use force to achieve their goals, international law and UN Security Council resolutions remain on paper,” he said.
Ilham Aliyev said that he gave an order to Azerbaijani army to end the occupation and punish the occupier. “Azerbaijan achieved what it wanted in 44 days and restored justice", he said.
Noting that he was delighted with the participation of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a large delegation from Turkey, Turkish soldiers and officers in the parade, Ilham Aliyev said that this was further evidence of the unity, friendship and brotherhood with Turkey.
The agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia was signed exactly a month ago and put an end to six weeks of fierce fighting over Nagorno-Karabakh. It was seen as a big victory in Azerbaijan, but prompted mass protests in Armenia, with opposition supporters demanding the country’s prime minister resign over his handling of the conflict.
Nagorno-Karabakh lies within Azerbaijan but has been under the control of ethnic Armenian forces backed by Armenia since a war there led to a ceasefire in 1994. That war left Nagorno-Karabakh itself and substantial surrounding territory in Armenian hands.
More than 3,000 soldiers took part in the parade on Thursday, and dozens of military vehicles drove through Baku. A flyover of helicopters and fighter planes completed the event, Associated Press reported.
Erdogan in his speech also took aim at Armenia and expressed hope the country would “take lessons” from the defeat and take steps that would pave the way for a new era in the region.
“We hope that Armenian leaders will assess this carefully and take courageous steps to build a future based on peace and stability,” Erdogan said.
Erdogan reiterated Turkey’s continued support to Azerbaijan. “As long as Turkey and Azerbaijan work hand in glove, they will continue to overcome all difficulties and run from one success to the next", he said.
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