Top Azerbaijani, German diplomats meet in Baku amid regional visit

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) – The foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Germany met in the capital Baku on Saturday amid a regional visit by the European minister, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said on Sunday.

“During the comprehensive meeting held between the ministers, opinions were exchanged on the current agenda of cooperation between the two countries, as well as regional and international security issues,” the statement said.

During the meeting with his German counterpart Annalena Baerbock, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov brought attention to the current situation and realities in the Karabakh region, including large-scale restoration and construction works and mine threats, as well as peace talks with Armenia, according to the statement.

The anti-terrorism operation carried out in Karabakh in September was directed against illegal separatist forces in the region, the statement said, adding that the scale of the militarization in Azerbaijani territories became clear once again.

It also said that the responsibility for the influx of Armenian residents leaving Azerbaijan is on Armenia, that the reason why Armenian people in the region left voluntarily was “the propaganda of the illegal regime in our territories about the impossibility of coexistence of Azerbaijanis and Armenians.”

“In spite of all this, it was noted that the unfair position exhibited against our country in recent times is regrettable and surprising, and the inadmissibility of showing a selective approach in relation to the main principles of international law, including principles such as territorial integrity and sovereignty, was noted,” the statement said.

Baerbock embarked on a regional visit on Friday. She visited the Armenian capital Yerevan before she arrived in Baku.

Relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, a territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, and seven adjacent regions.

Most of the territory was liberated by Azerbaijan during a war in the fall of 2020, which ended after a Russian-brokered peace agreement and also opened the door to normalization.

This September, the Azerbaijani army initiated an anti-terrorism operation in Karabakh to establish constitutional order in the region, after which illegal separatist forces in the region surrendered.

Azerbaijan, having now established full sovereignty in the region, has reiterated its call on the Armenian population in Karabakh to become part of Azerbaijani society.