Few countries solve problems of refugees just as Azerbaijan

He made the remarks at a meeting with Rovshan Rzayev, Chairman of the State Committee for Refugees and IDPs of Azerbaijan.

The sides discussed the issues of settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the importance of the EU’s fair position in this issue, and the problems of Azerbaijanis expelled from their homes as a result of Armenia’s aggressive policy.

It was noted that for resolving the conflict, the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan should be restored and more than 1.2 million refugees and IDPs should return to their lands.

It was also pointed out during the meeting that the IDPs temporarily residing in different areas of Azerbaijan, want to return home, and that the liberation of Jojug Marjanli village of Jabrayil region from occupation and its restoration made happy the families that had been forced to leave those lands.

Rzayev said that presently, the return of the inhabitants to the village is continuing, and as President Ilham Aliyev has repeatedly stressed, the work on reconstruction and rehabilitation will be carried out in all the territories of Azerbaijan liberated from occupation.

Jankauskas, in turn, expressed confidence that the existing close and effective relations will always develop. He noted that he will make every effort to further develop relations between Azerbaijan and the EU.

The sides also discussed the prospects for further cooperation.

Due to the ethnic cleansing policy carried out by Armenia and the Armenian occupation of NagornoKarabakh and seven surrounding regions of Azerbaijan, the number of refugees and IDPs in Azerbaijan hit more than 1.2 million. With a population of about 9.8 million, Azerbaijan is among the countries carrying the highest IDP caseload in the world in per capita terms.

Thanks to the measures taken by the government over the past 13 years, the level of poverty among IDPs in Azerbaijan decreased from 75 to 12 percent.

He reminded that on July 4, 2017, 51-year-old Sahiba Allahverdiyeva and her two-year-old granddaughter Zahra Guliyeva were killed in the Alkhanli village of Fuzuli region, and 52-year-old Sarvinaz Guliyeva was seriously injured.

“The trajectory of the projectile, the absence of any object of military importance or legitimate military objectives clearly show that the aim of the Armenian Armed Forces was the deliberate and purposeful killing of civilians,” Hajiyev said, adding that killing a small child and an elderly woman is a meanness and cowardice.

The spokesman noted that over the past period, the military-political leadership of Armenia has not taken any steps to investigate this war crime, but on the contrary, it tried to justify this terrorist act.

“As a result of the military aggression against Azerbaijan and the occupation of Azerbaijani lands, Armenia committed numerous war crimes and criminal acts against humanity, including the Khojaly genocide,” Hajiyev said.

He stressed that such actions of Armenia are a gross violation of international humanitarian law, in particular the obligations under the Geneva Convention.

“Armenia, which remains unpunished, has no moral, political or legal right to commit these crimes. During the April 2016 events, the Armenian Armed Forces attempted the same acts against civilians and facilities along the entire line of contact. However, thanks to the resolute and professional counter-offensive measures of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces, Armenia received a worthy rebuff,” Hajiyev noted.

He added that the presence of the Armenian Armed Forces in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan continues to be a serious threat to peace and stability in the region.

“To stop this threat, Armenian troops must be unconditionally and completely withdrawn from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions,” the spokesman stressed.

The two-year-old Zahra was one of the many innocent children terribly killed by the Armenian Armed Forces during and after the Nagorno-Karabakh war. In March 2011, nine-year-old Fariz Badalov was shot in the head by an Armenian sniper while playing in the courtyard in Aghdam region. In July of the same year, 13-year-old Azerbaijani girl Aygun Shahmaliyeva fell victim to Armenia’s inhumane and immoral policy in the Alibayli village. She tragically died as a result of the explosion of a toy with an explosive device, which the Armenian side deliberately dropped into the river flowing to the village.

Armenia broke out a lengthy war against Azerbaijan by laying territorial claims on the country. Since a war in the early 1990s, Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and over 1 million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities.

To this day, Armenia has not implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the NagornoKarabakh and surrounding regions.