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Ilham Aliyev: I want to witness a day when three countries of the South Caucasus work together

Ilham Aliyev: I want to witness a day when three countries of
Ilham Aliyev: I want to witness a day when three countries of the South Caucasus work together

"During forty days of the war, on several occasions, I said that I wish to see the day when three South Caucasian countries would be working together. As we do with Georgia, our close strategic partner and friend," Ilham Aliyev, the President of Azerbaijan, said in an interview with BBC News.

"Look at how many projects we implemented with them. How close our relations are. They are based on historical legacy, and they are based on pragmatism on the balance of our interests. So why Armenia became isolated? Because of the occupation.

And if you look at the map, for instance, our energy and transportation projects, you will see that they bypass Armenia. The shortest way for us to deliver our resources to the international markets was through Armenia, and we offered them that in the 1990s.

We said, 'look, liberate the territories, let's build the pipeline through Armenian territory, and then enter Nakhchivan and then Turkey, we will combine the interests of all countries'. We will make all countries of the region in a certain way interdependent. And that will be a guarantee for peace. They said, 'no.'

I offered many times through the Minsk Group co-chairs, they can approve it, financial assistance, social programs in Nagorno-Karabakh financing from our budget if they liberate territories. They said no. I offered autonomy, the highest possible autonomy in the world; I offered to Nagorno-Karabakh. Armenians said no. They said no to everything. So, what happens now is their fault," Aliyev said.

According to the President of Azerbaijan, it is not too late for negotiations because when Azerbaijan establishes control over cities and villages, there will be nothing to discuss.

"If they behave reasonably, we can work on some forms of self-governance. We are not against it. But they should not violate the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. They should be based on the best practice which European countries, like Italy, Sweden, and Finland, have between themselves. Why should there be something different? And then, of course, the peace will come to the region," Aliyev said.

According to Aliyev, the government in Armenia should change, reasonable people should come, those who are not affiliated with bloodshed and military crimes.

"I think, by joint actions, we can create a new format of cooperation in the Southern Caucasus among Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Armenia, which used to be in Soviet times. We had friendly relations; we lived together," the President of Azerbaijan noted. 

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