He made the remarks at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland answering to a question on the Ukrainian conflict’s impact on the situation in the post-Soviet countries.
The president said that from the political point of view, for any country that has good, friendly relations with Russia and Ukraine, it is not a preferable situation.
“Of course we share the pain of people who lost their relatives, and this tragedy unfortunately continues. Innocent people are being killed from both sides, and the sooner all this comes to an end, the better,” he added.
The president said Azerbaijan is a country which has suffered from war and occupation itself.
“Every war ends with ceasefire, then, preferably peace agreement must be signed,” he added. “What is important is how the governments of Russia and Ukraine treat their partners, what is the level of understanding in the governments of these countries, in the position of their partners, because we are all CIS members, we all were members of Soviet Union."
Noting that Azerbaijan has a lot of connections, the president said that one million of Azerbaijanis live in Russia and more than 500,000 live in Ukraine.
The president said Azerbaijan’s position on territorial integrity is very clear and straightforward, and no one can expect any other position from the country.
“Having in mind international law norms and our situation with Armenia, I am glad that the Russian government and the leadership understand that this position, which Azerbaijan has, and they respect this position,” the president said, adding, “And we have discussed it on high level with my colleagues in Russia. The same, I hope, is the situation with the Ukrainian government.”
“We didn’t have a chance to have a contact but I think they also should understand that for us Russia is a good friend, reliable partner, big neighbor. We have a lot of contacts, a lot of trade, mutual interests. The way how the relations between Russia and Azerbaijan develop is a good indicator of how the relations between big and small country can be managed, it is a good indicator,” he said.
The president noted that the countries like Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and some others have their own agenda, their own position, and they do not want to damage relations with Russia or Ukraine.
“And they want the soonest resolution of this conflict, first of all because of victims, because of tragedy, because this situation is not comfortable,” he added.
The president also expressed hope that soon there will be ceasefire and then agreements.
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