President of Azerbaijan spoke delivered speech at the panel, then answered questions from participants.
The representative of Armenia addressed to the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, accusing the Azerbaijani army in the shelling of the Armenian positions and increased tensions on the front line.
President Aliyev said the following: "In principle, this is tactic of the Armenian side - always throw the blame on us. They invaded our territory, violated international law, committed genocide in Khojaly, destroyed our historical and religious monuments, and shift the blame on us. But the question is that what the Armenian soldier are doing in the occupied territories? What Armenian soldier is doing in Agdam? If he does not want to be killed, he shall not go to Agdam. Let him stay in his Yerevan, Gyumri, in their own country. You have enough space in own country, there is, in fact, not too many people left, so what are you doing in Agdam, what are you doing in Fizuli?"
“The year 2014 was generally remarkable in terms of the activity of intermediaries in the negotiations. President Putin organized a meeting between President Sargsyan and me in August. Already in September, Secretary of State [John] Kerry organized a round of negotiations with the Armenian president and me. Finally, at the end of October, President Hollande invited us to Paris, where we had, I would say, an excellent, very constructive meeting. Both parties then stated that they considered this meeting a great success and will try to reduce tension on the frontline. What happened then? After less than ten days, Armenia began military exercises on the occupied territories, particularly in Agdam, with the participation, according to the Armenian media, of 47 thousand soldiers. They organized manoeuvres in occupied territory with the use of military equipment, aircraft and helicopters. For three days our army remained patient enough not to respond, but then Armenia with the help of its Mi-24 helicopters attacked Azerbaijan`s position. Our army had to respond and one of the helicopters was shot down. For Armenia, it was an occasion to accuse Azerbaijan. With this provocation, it showed disrespect to the leaders of France, Russia and the United States that have made so much effort to reduce tensions. Armenia thinks itcan do anything, and no one will punish it. This is the main reason behind Armenia`s behavior. Now they are blaming us, saying, Do not shoot!. So, my message to Armenia is: end the occupation." As soon as you stop the occupation, we will have peace, cooperation and reconciliation. And the reason why it is not happening is because the Armenian soldier is still in Agdam and Fizuli", Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said.
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