Azernews.Az

Akbar Novruz

Read more

The Initiative Group for the Return to Western Azerbaijan of the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan has issued a statement highlighting Armenia’s decades-long policy of ethnic cleansing and systemic racism against Azerbaijanis, Azernews reports.

“The conflict initiated by Armenia in 1987 subjected the Azerbaijani people to unprecedented suffering,” the statement reads. “More than a million Azerbaijanis were displaced from their homeland, and this was not a side effect of the conflict but a deliberate outcome of ethnic cleansing systematically carried out by Armenia.”

The statement emphasized that racism has been institutionalized as state policy in Armenia, resulting in mass atrocities and cultural destruction.

“This state has carried out total and systematic ethnic cleansing on its territory and in the Azerbaijani lands it occupied for thirty years. Armenia has destroyed Azerbaijani cultural heritage, looted natural resources, and deliberately contaminated Azerbaijani territories with landmines. Only an ideology based on racial hatred, radical nationalism, and violent extremism could lead to such large-scale and ruthless crimes,” the group noted.

The Initiative Group cited a 1993 speech by former Armenian President Levon Ter-Petrosyan as damning evidence of Armenia’s state responsibility for these crimes. In the speech, Ter-Petrosyan described the ethnic cleansing of Azerbaijanis as a "historical achievement," stating:

“Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh have solved the problem that the Armenian people could not solve for 600 years. Armenia and Artsakh have been completely cleansed of foreigners... If there were 180,000 foreigners in Armenia today, we would not have a state today. This problem has been solved.”

The group stressed that this policy of racism and ethnic cleansing persisted under subsequent Armenian leaders. Former Presidents Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan openly propagated racist and revanchist ideologies, with Sargsyan boasting about his role in the Khojaly massacre and adopting the fascist ideology of Garegin Nzhdeh. Meanwhile, current Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan continues these policies by obstructing the return of Azerbaijanis expelled from Armenia.

The statement also warned of the dangers posed by Armenia’s ongoing militarization:

“In the context of Armenia’s racist and revanchist policy, its current large-scale armament poses a serious threat to peace and security. President Ilham Aliyev has clearly expressed the scale of this threat, and we fully support his vision for establishing peace and stability in the region.”

The Initiative Group called on the international community to take action:

“We urge parliaments and the global community to condemn Armenia’s state-level racism, human rights violations, and rapid militarization. As a member of the United Nations and a party to numerous human rights conventions, Armenia must be held accountable. We demand that the Armenian government cease armament, abandon racist policies, ensure the safe and dignified return of Western Azerbaijanis to their homeland, and engage in dialogue with the Western Azerbaijani Community.”

The group expressed gratitude to President Ilham Aliyev for his support in championing the rights of Western Azerbaijanis and for his dedication to regional peace and stability.