Azernews.Az

Abbas Ganbay

Read more

Armenian-born residents of Garabakh cannot be considered Azerbaijani citizens, as they have not yet applied for Azerbaijani citizenship. Most of them already have Armenian passports. There are less than a thousand people who have applied for Azerbaijani citizenship.

Ambassador Elchin Amirbayov, the representative of the President of Azerbaijan on special assignments, said this in an interview with Italy's "In Terris" while answering the questions of the correspondent about the Garabagh war, the migration of Armenians, their return, and plans for the establishment of sustainable peace in the South Caucasus, Azernews reports.

"Does Azerbaijan intend to invade Armenia in the near future?" the ambassador's answer to the question was clear and unequivocal:

“Definitely, I will say that this is fake news that has been spreading in recent days, the origin of which we cannot understand until the end. The reason or excuse for such false news is the transport link that will be created between Azerbaijan and its exclave Nakhchivan, called "Zangazur Corridor": in fact, it is not only a link connecting Azerbaijan and Armenia or regional states, but also Asia in a wider sense. It can be an alternative route of the middle transport corridor that can connect with Europe, and in fact, it is a strategic project that can give a strong boost to world trade.

According to him, if Erivan does not like the word "corridor", it should be a passage, road, connection, etc. such terms can be used".

Elchin Amirbeyov reminded that the mentioned term is "purely an economic and transport concept":

"If Armenia does not fulfill its commitment on this matter, we essentially have an alternative option, and thus the project of connecting the main part of Azerbaijan with the autonomous republic of Nakhchivan through the territory of Iran by rail and road will be implemented in a short time. As for Armenia, it will remain the deadlock in the region until now, and this will be the choice of the Armenians themselves. In response to your question, let me say once again that in any case, Azerbaijan does not have a territorial claim against Armenia, and this is most likely a groundless claim deliberately spread by Armenia."

The representative of the President on special assignments also answered the journalist's question about the number of Armenian residents in Garabagh and their possible return. First of all, he reminded that "they are not citizens because they have not yet applied for Azerbaijani citizenship".

"Most of them already have Armenian passports, and at least a third of them are not originally from Garabagh, but came from Armenia and illegally settled in Garabagh in recent decades under the influence of a kind of "colonial" spirit. There are less than a thousand people who have applied for Azerbaijani citizenship and pledged to give up separatist actions."

Ambassador Amirbeyov noted that "aggressive separatism, which is a serious threat to the state, is prohibited in many constitutions, including the Italian constitution." According to him, "returning them is a complicated matter."

"We understand that after 30 years of conflict, fleeing is a predictable choice, but it was their personal choice, even though the government of Azerbaijan urged them not to leave the country. We have created a portal that allows for a quick return to Azerbaijan, and we are committed to guaranteeing the safety, rights, and economic well-being of these people. We believe that the remaining few people can play an attractive role, given that they are in contact with the escapees," Elchin Amirbeyov emphasized.

The publication also asked the president's representative on special assignments about Azerbaijan's position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Elchin Amirbeyov noted that Azerbaijan is "perhaps the Muslim-majority country with the best relationship with Israel in the world":

"This is more than simple friendship. It is enough to understand the peaceful conditions of the Jewish community in our country. We believe that the conflict has a territorial origin, not a religious one. We are saddened by the loss of life on both sides, and that is why we, like the majority of the United Nations, voted in favor of a ceasefire in the fighting in Gaza. We believe that the conditions of peace should be restored soon, innocent people should not lose their lives, and we support the well-known solution, which includes the formula of two peoples, and two states.

At the same time, the ambassador clarified the question regarding the situation of Catholicism and Christianity in general in Azerbaijan.

"Of course, the number of Catholics in our country is small, but all their rights are protected by the state, like the rights of other citizens of the country. It should be taken into account that Azerbaijan is a secular country as well as a multicultural and multi-confessional country. And this diversity is the source of our pride. Muslims, Orthodox, Jews, Catholics, and others live peacefully together here. They can have their own places of worship and fulfill their religious needs according to the law."

He noted that when St. John Paul II was in Baku in 2002, then President Heydar Aliyev made a decision to allocate free land to Catholics in Baku for the construction of a church.

"The church was opened in 2008 by the then Secretary of State of the Holy See, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone. Pope Francis visited Azerbaijan in 2016 and was very pleased with the religious tolerance and the degree of religious freedom prevailing in our country. During the traditional meeting with journalists on the plane that took him back to Rome, he spoke about the Azerbaijan model, which is a platform for religious coexistence and secularism, promotes freedom and mutual respect, and said that it can be an example for many countries.

Elchin Amirbeyov emphasized that, as for churches, monasteries, religious works, and objects belonging to Christians, they are an integral part of the rich artistic and cultural heritage of Azerbaijan and therefore are protected by the state.

"We are currently carrying out a census of all religious monuments, including Christian monuments, in Garabagh, in the recently liberated territories. If cultural and religious heritage was insulted on the territory of our country, in relation to those of Islamic origin, it was carried out by the occupying forces of Armenia: I would like to draw your attention to only one terrible figure: 65 out of 67 mosques in the Azerbaijani lands under Armenian occupation were completely destroyed by the invaders. , the remaining two mosques were severely damaged. "Unfortunately, no one in the world expresses concern about this," the Azerbaijani official pointed out.

The representative of the President on special assignments touched upon Baku's relations with the Vatican.

"I am in Rome to hold a series of high-level meetings, both in the Vatican and in the Republic of Italy. Needless to say, Italy is my country's most important partner in the European Union. As for the Holy See, we celebrated the 30th anniversary of our diplomatic relations last year, and our relations are growing. We hope that the Vatican side will soon open its own nunciature in Baku, just as we sent our own ambassador to the Holy See in Rome. One of the main goals in the negotiations with my interlocutors is to inform the other side about the current situation, prospects, and challenges of the peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan in the South Caucasus, and to conduct a useful exchange of views on this issue," the ambassador said.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz