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Elnur Enveroglu

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Today was one of the most historic days for Azerbaijan. This is such a historical day that it can also be appreciated as the day of Azerbaijan's pride. The 30-year-long Armenian occupation and separatism have eventually come to an end, and the tricolor flag of Azerbaijan is proudly flying in our historical territories, which were once the illegal abode of the invaders.

It was not a random day that victorious Supreme Commander-in-Chief Ilham Aliyev raised our flag in Khojavand, Khojaly, Askaran, Aghdara, and finally Khankendi. As the Supreme Commander-in-Chief emphasized, we have been waiting for these days for a long time, and thanks to the patience and restraint shown, we finally had our wishes come true.

“We approached this issue with restraint and patience, as we do with everything else. Because we knew that we would come here. I knew that. Exactly 20 years ago, on October 15, 2003, I made that promise to the people of Azerbaijan and to myself. Yes, we waited for 20 years, or rather for 17 years. Three years ago, our flag was raised in Shusha. However, we have achieved what we wanted, fulfilled the decades-long wishes of the Azerbaijani people. We have restored the dignity of the Azerbaijani people. We have returned to our lands, we have restored our territorial integrity, and at the same time, we have restored our dignity,” the President said.

The Second Garabagh war lasted only 44 days, and although the separatists yet had not been completely removed from the Azerbaijani territories, Azerbaijan chose the peace agreement and accepted Armenia’s signing the capitulation document on November 10. At that time, many thought that Azerbaijan took a step back under the pressure of the pro-Armenian forces. However, there were many who believed that this day would happen.

This is the ripe fruit of a profound policy - as it persevered and reaped its fruits. Three years ago, all international organizations identified Azerbaijan as a target of a negative side. The words of the Armenian invaders were heard in all organizations, and a boycott plan was being prepared against Azerbaijan. Behind this plan, France, the US Senate and leading congressmen worked with all their efforts. Western media occupied the main news sections every day with articles exhibiting biased positions against Azerbaijan. They organized such a provocation that they almost introduced Azerbaijan to the world as an invader.

However, Azerbaijan agreed with the articles of the November 10 statement and with great restraint showed the real processes in Garabagh to the world community. As the saying goes, Leopard neve changes its spots.

The provocations in Garabagh did not stop until the Armenians changed their aggressor character. The situation was even brought to such an extent that the Armenian separatists rejected Baku's peace proposal and attempted to ignite a new war in the region. There was nothing hidden anymore, everything was settled on the table and everyone saw the truth and had to come to terms with reality. The only party that denied the truth was a group of separatist elements. But soon they were also forced to accept the truth.

When the President of Azerbaijan addressed the people while raising the flag in Khankendi, he also touched on very important points. About 36 years ago, when the national leader Heydar Aliyev was removed from the office of the Communist Party of the former Soviet Union, Armenian nationalists began to implement their nefarious plans with the help of France, just like today. Thus, taking advantage of the absence of a national leader, the Armenians, with the mediation of certain forces in Moscow, established the status of the “Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast” to occupy the territory of Azerbaijan's Garabagh. The most interesting point was the support of the French media in publicizing this issue.

If we just look at the processes from the Patriotic War until today, we can see that France is the most active country supporting separatism among the Western powers. By playing the role of an obstacle in the entire peace negotiation process, France revealed its dirty plans regarding the South Caucasus. Every time the French leadership defended Armenia, it was more pro-Armenian than Armenians. But in the last attack, France realized that times had changed. The situation in the Caucasus is no longer the same as it was 36 years ago. Azerbaijan, which has an independent policy, has a strong army, economic potential, and wide diplomatic influence.

No more words are needed to explain. After that, it remains to draw conclusions for Armenia. Azerbaijan has fully restored its territorial integrity and has taken steps to ensure peace and security in the region. Now the choice is Armenia's; either cooperation with the regional states, or being used as a tool in the hands of forces like France and finally doomed to destruction...

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Elnur Enveroglu is AzerNews’ deputy editor-in-chief, follow him on @ElnurMammadli1

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