Aliyev: Azerbaijan’s Main Enemy is the Armenian Lobby

Azeri President Ilham Aliyev speaks at a cabinet meeting in Baku on July 13, 2015 (Source: RFE/RL)

BAKU (APA)—President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has stated that his country’s main enemy is the Armenian lobby. “The Armenian lobby is trying to prove that there is no democracy in Azerbaijan and that human rights are allegedly violated regularly, thus the Armenian minority can’t live here in the future. It’s complete nonsense.” Aliyev made the remarks on Tuesday during a meeting with board members of his Press Council, APA reports.

“Azerbaijan is a multinational and multi-confessional country. People of all nationalities and religions coexist in a state of brotherhood in Azerbaijan. Unique conditions were created in our country and it can be an example for many countries. However, the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is the main thesis behind this propaganda and anti-Azerbaijani campaign. Therefore, we should promote Azerbaijan as modern, progressive, open, tolerant country in the world’s media. We should also highlight both the historical realities and Azerbaijan’s position on the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,” Aliyev stated.

“It was Armenian separatists in Nagorno-Karabakh, backed by Armenia, who launched the aggression against Azerbaijan,” he said. “The first victims of that conflict were Azerbaijanis. This aggression resulted in ethnic cleansing and genocide in Khodjaly, and the occupation of almost 20 percent of our territory. And there can be no justification of this occupation.”

According to Aliyev, the Armenian people suffer from a criminal regime of dictatorship.

“This regime has put the Armenian people in a terrible situation, that in order to overcome it, you may need 100 years. However, the Armenian lobby day and night are trying to slander Azerbaijan, to undermine its authority. They have broad financial resources. They are closely connected with the authorities of their countries where they donate to the legislators under the name of “lobbying.” But, in fact, it is a bribe. Thus, the Armenian lobby is at the forefront of an organized campaign against us.”

Aliyev also claimed that Nagorno-Karabakh as well as Armenia are both native Azerbaijani land. According to him, “the names of the absolute majority of towns and villages in the territory of present-day Armenia are of Azerbaijani origin, the Azerbaijani people for centuries lived in these lands.”