BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 26
Trend:
From now on, Azerbaijan will live as a victorious state and Armenia as a defeated country, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Ilham Aliyev said addressing the meeting with a leadership and a group of military personnel of Azerbaijani Army on the occasion of the Armed Forces Day at Gulustan Palace, Trend reports.
“The April fighting was not a lesson for Armenia. Two years later, as a result of the Nakhchivan operation, we took over a large area, demonstrating our strength and professionalism once again. That did not serve them as a lesson either. Finally, the second Karabakh war was a lesson that they will remember forever. The second Karabakh war is our glorious history. This history will live in the hearts of the Azerbaijani people forever. It was a celebration of justice. It was a celebration of pride, a celebration of national dignity, a celebration of the indomitable spirit of the Azerbaijani people. We mobilized all our resources, won this war and drove the enemy out of our lands. We put the enemy in such a disgraceful situation that they knelt before us, waved the white flag and were forced to sign an act of capitulation. However, during the war, I repeatedly said in my speeches and interviews that we were ready to stop. As President, I declared that the Armenian leader should personally provide us with a timetable of when Armenian military units would leave our lands, provide a date to us, and we will stop the war. However, the Armenian side lost this chance yet again. As a result of the war, the Armenian army was completely crushed. I voiced these figures before, so you know them very well. You have destroyed the Armenian army, there is no Armenian army any longer – 336 tanks were destroyed or taken as spoils of war. Eight S300 installations were destroyed, other anti-aircraft systems were destroyed, artillery pieces were destroyed. In other words, there is no Armenian army any longer. During the war – it is no longer a secret – the mediators sent a message to Armenia that it is necessary to stop and provide a timetable for the withdrawal. But they refused. After we had liberated Shusha from the occupiers, they were forced to sign an act of capitulation in the early hours of 10 November,” Azerbaijani president said.
“We showed strong resolve and courage. We demonstrated national spirit and achieved what we wanted. I want to say again that the second Karabakh war is forever inscribed in the history of Azerbaijan in golden letters as a glorious victory. From now on, Azerbaijan will live as a victorious state and Armenia as a defeated country,” the head of state said.