Azernews.Az

By Vafa Ismayilova

The Azerbaijani parliament adopted the bill "On Independence Day" on October 15.

Under the bill, May 28, which was celebrated as Republic Day of Azerbaijan, will henceforth be celebrated as Independence Day. October 18 will be celebrated as the Restoration of Independence Day and will be considered a working day, officially.

October 18, 2021, will mark 30 years since the restoration of Azerbaijan's independence. For the first time since 1991, the Azerbaijani people will mark this holiday as a victorious people who restored the territorial integrity of their homeland, following the end of the second Karabakh war.

After discussions, the bill was put to a vote and adopted in the third and last reading.

Meanwhile, Speaker Sahiba Gafarova said that the parliament will send a congratulatory letter to President Ilham Aliyev and First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva on the occasion of October 18.

She noted that under Aliyev's leadership Azerbaijan is a strong state with authority in the region.

"We can say with confidence that under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev, our country will achieve even greater success," Gafarova stressed.

On September 27, 2020, in response to a large-scale provocation of the Armenian armed forces along the frontline, Azerbaijan launched a counter-offensive operation, which put an end to nearly 30 years of Armenian occupation, ensured the liberation of its occupied lands and the restoration of its territorial integrity.

A Moscow-brokered ceasefire deal that Baku and Yerevan signed on November 10, 2020, brought an end to six weeks of fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijani army declared a victory against the Armenian troops. The signed agreement obliged Armenia to withdraw its troops from the Azerbaijani lands that it has occupied since the early 1990s.

The peace agreement stipulated the return of Azerbaijan's Armenian-occupied Kalbajar, Aghdam and Lachin regions and urged Armenia to withdraw its troops from the Azerbaijani lands that it has occupied since the early 1990s. Before the signing of the deal, the Azerbaijani army had liberated around 300 villages, settlements, city centers, and historic Shusha city.

--

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz