BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 21
Trend:
Unlike Armenia, Azerbaijani armed forces never shell civilian objects, Assistant to Azerbaijan’s President, Head of Foreign Policy Affairs Department of the Presidential Administration Hikmat Hajiyev said.
He made the remark at a press conference held on July 21, Trend reports.
Hajiyev noted that Armenia is deliberately spreading such disinformation in order to politicize this issue. He added that the Azerbaijani side has never made statements about possible strikes on Armenian civilian objects.
“However, Armenia has repeatedly made threatening statements related to strikes on Azerbaijan’s Mingachevir reservoir, oil and gas pipelines, and Azerbaijani cities. All this shows the insidious goals of the Armenian military-political leadership. With these issues the Armenian side is trying to hide its crimes and divert the attention of the international community.”
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on the withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
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