Azerbaijan plans to build three airports in Nagorno-Karabakh, one of which will be ready in the fall. 2.2 billion manats or 1.3 billion US dollars will be invested in this. The statement came from the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev. Aliyev finds it challenging to predict the start-end date of construction, as demining works create some difficulties.
"We have already started construction of the airport in Fizuli. We also plan to build two more in Lachin and Zangilan. All of them will be international airports and will allow both foreigners and locals to travel freely to the city of Shusha. It is expected that Fizuli Airport will be ready this autumn," he added.
As for the return of refugees to the region, Aliyev said official Baku would try to do so as soon as possible.
"I do not want to name specific dates, but we will return the IDPs as soon as possible. Azerbaijani people will also return to the territories currently under the control of the peacekeeping forces," Aliyev said.
Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Russia signed a joint statement on November 10 ending the Nagorno-Karabakh war, and Baku took control of several regions of Karabakh, including those lost during the war in the early 1990s. Under the agreements, Russian peacekeepers stationed along the corridor connecting Karabakh with Armenia for at least five years. Baku's close ally, Turkey, has set up a monitoring center in the region with Russia to monitor compliance with Azerbaijan's ceasefire agreement. According to Ilham Aliyev, the issue of establishing a Turkish military base in Azerbaijan is not on the agenda, although Baku is buying Turkish weapons.
