Azernews.Az

By Vafa Ismayilova

Azerbaijan’s Defence Minister Zakir Hasanov has said that the newly-inaugurated joint Turkish-Russian monitoring centre in the country will contribute to the restoration of lasting peace and security in and around the Nagorno-Karabakh region liberated from Armenian occupation in a 44-day war between September 27 and November 10, 2020.

Hasanov made the remarks at a briefing held after the opening ceremony of the joint monitoring centre in Azerbaijan’s Aghdam region on January 30. The opening of the centre, which will control the ceasefire in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone, was also attended by Turkish Deputy Defence Minister Yunus Emre Karaosmanoglu and Russian Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin.

“The memorandum signed between the Republic of Turkey and the Russian Federation on the establishment of a Joint Ceasefire Control Centre signed on November 11, 2020, is of special importance.
The activities of the centre will contribute to the establishment of long-term peace and security in the region," Hasanov said.

The minister expressed confidence that friendly and working relations will be established between Turkish and Russian colleagues at the centre. Hasanov congratulated the Turkish and Russian servicemen on the opening of the centre and wished them success in their combat activities.

Hasanov reminded that on September 27, 2020, the Azerbaijani army, preventing another provocation of the Armenian armed forces, launched a counter-offensive operation.

"The war, which lasted 44 days, ended with the complete victory of Azerbaijan and restoration of the country’s territorial integrity. With the signing of a trilateral statement on November 10 between the President of Azerbaijan, the President of Russia and the Prime Minister of Armenia, a ceasefire was reached. The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which lasted for about 30 years, is over," added the minister.

Monitoring centre

An agreement to establish a monitoring centre in the liberated lands was reached as part of the November 10 Karabakh peace deal after the liberation of Azerbaijan’s territories from Armenian occupation.

The Azerbaijani Defence Ministry reports that the total area of ​​the monitoring centre is about four hectares. On the territory, there are 65 modular office premises and living quarters, which are provided with all the necessary equipment. The centre has a briefing room, a canteen with 100 seats, a first-aid post, an atelier and a shop. The centre’s territory is fenced around the perimeter; it includes four watchtowers, round-the-clock security. The protection of the Turkish-Russian joint monitoring centre will be carried out by the Azerbaijani army.

The Russian personnel of the centre will be led by Major General Viktor Fedorenko and the Turkish personnel by Major General Abdullah Gatırcı.

Contribution to regional peace

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Turkish Deputy Defence Minister Yunus Emre Karaosmanoglu said that thanks to the Turkish-Russian Joint Monitoring Center, a contribution will be made to ensuring regional stability in the region and that cooperation between Azerbaijan, Turkey and Russia will strengthen the relationship of mutual friendship and trust.

"Turkey will continue to stand in solidarity with the Azerbaijani brothers. The work of this centre will contribute to stability in the region," Trend quoted Karaosmanoglu as saying at the ceremony.

The Azerbaijani Defence Ministry added that the Turkish and Russian deputy defence ministers thanked Azerbaijan for the work done for the full operation of the joint centre and the conditions created there. It was noted that as a result of joint activities, the centre will adequately cope with the tasks and future targets, as well as ensure regional peace and stability.

On the sidelines of the opening ceremony, Zakir Hasanov had separate meetings with the Turkish and Russian deputy defence ministers. At the meeting with Fomin, the sides focused on international and regional security, the current state of military and technical cooperation and prospects of developing ties and other issues of mutual interest.

At the meeting with Karaosmanoglu, the parties noted that military cooperation serves the interests of both countries. They stressed the need to increase efforts in this direction, especially in the field of military-technical cooperation and joint exercises. It was noted that the military exercises between Azerbaijan and Turkey, along with increasing the professionalism of the military personnel of both countries, serve to maintain peace, security and stability in the region. The two men also exchanged views over issues of regional and bilateral cooperation.

A day before the opening ceremony, on January 29, Hasanov and his Turkish counterpart Hulusi Akar had a phone conversation to discuss the start of operations at the monitoring centre.

Leaders rejoice monitoring centre opening

On January 30, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev phoned his Turkish and Russian counterparts Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Vladimir Putin to congratulate them on the opening of the centre in Aghdam region. The leaders expressed their confidence that the launch of the Center will contribute to ensuring long-lasting peace and security in the region.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan thanked President Ilham Aliyev for the congratulations. During the phone conversation, the presidents hailed the implementation of the provisions of the trilateral statement signed on November 10. The heads of state emphasized that Azerbaijan-Turkey friendly and brotherly relations would continue to develop successfully in all areas. The two leaders praised the Turkish companies' active involvement in the restoration and reconstruction of the liberated territories of Azerbaijan.

Putin also thanked President Aliyev for the congratulations. The two presidents stressed the importance of the January 31 meeting held in Moscow at the level of the Azerbaijani, Russian and Armenian deputy prime ministers on the implementation of the transport and communication-related clause in the trilateral statement signed on November 10.

During the conversation, the sides hailed the successful development of Azerbaijan-Russia friendly relations based on the strategic partnership in all areas and expressed confidence that the bilateral ties would continue strengthening.

Expert views

Political analyst Fikrat Sadikhov has said that the structure undoubtedly serves the purpose of strengthening regional stability and security.

“I am sure that henceforth the attempts of Armenian illegal armed groups to block the path of Azerbaijani transport on the Azerbaijani territory will end. All these issues will be taken under control, in which Turkey is now taking an active part. Another thing is unambiguous: the creation of such a centre and the official presence of the Turkish military on the Azerbaijani territory means the formation of a new balance of forces in the region. These are the very new realities that the Azerbaijani president has repeatedly spoken about,” he said.

The expert stressed that Turkey is not just a neutral, impartial country that will exist on our territory and formally monitor the situation.

“The Turkish contingent will defend the interests of Azerbaijan. Turkey will defend justice here, and justice is on our side. We defend our territory, do not allow the penetration of saboteurs, terrorists and various types of scum into Azerbaijan’s territory. And if we are talking about security and stability, then there is no doubt that Turkey will guard our interests,” he said.

Military expert Shair Ramaldanov believes that the arrival of the Turkish military in Karabakh will radically change the situation. He described the centre's opening as a very significant event.

Recalling some problems, he noted that the participation of Turkish officers in the centre will allow resolve them. He added that these are visits to Khankendi by Armenian officials, in particular, by the foreign minister, the installation of a monument to Nazi henchman Nzhdeh in Khojavend.

“The monument to the Nazi was erected on the territory of Azerbaijan, despite the fact that everyone is well aware of our attitude to the glorification of Nazi criminals. The fact that the Armenians are obstructing the passage of our cargo caravans to Kalbajar, interfering with the movement of vehicles with Azerbaijani plate numbers on Azerbaijani territory is also outraging. Also, the active settlement of Karabakh by Armenians continues completely uncontrollably - Armenians from Armenia are literally forced to move to Azerbaijan,” he said.

The expert stressed that unfortunately, the Armenian population living in Azerbaijan will serve as a source of destabilization for a long time to come as there are a lot of forces in the geopolitical scene not wishing the situation in the South Caucasus to stabilize, while those in Armenia and the diaspora continue to live with revanchist ideas.

“We just got out of the war, there are certain risks that the Armenians expect to play on. However, the Azerbaijani president’s wise steps block their opportunities for provocations,” he said.

Ramaldanov added that thanks to President Ilham Aliyev’s foresight, "today we have a monitoring group that will fully ensure the interests of the Azerbaijani state. And these interests lie in the strict implementation of all points of the November 10 statement on peace and the implementation of international norms. By and large, this is in the interests of the entire region”.

He noted that Azerbaijan's victory in this war should be considered somewhat broader, on the scale of the entire region.

“Azerbaijan, under the wise leadership of Commander-in-Chief President Ilham Aliyev managed to defeat the evil and establish peace. The war is over, and at the leaders' meetings today they are no longer talking about the conflict in the South Caucasus, but about the opening of communications and the like. So we not only liberated our lands but also brought stability to the region,” he stressed.

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