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Elnur Enveroglu

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Now we see how Europe and the West is united to help Ukraine to fight against separatism. And why in our case our fight against separatism is treated differently?

President Ilham Aliyev said these words in an interview with Euronews TV channel yesterday.

Why Georgia's approach to separatist regions is fully understood by Western communities and politicians, and our legitimate, the same origin desire, to put an end to separatism is under question?

Why Spain does not allow Catalonia to have a referendum though there are five or six million? They don't have their own state unlike Armenians, which have a state next door. Why should we tolerate separatism? We will not.

While addressing these thoughts to the international community, the President of Azerbaijan actually hinted it to some pro-Armenian politicians in PACE and the US Congress, and at the same time to some speculators who make a decision every day in the French Parliament. How is it that the Armenians can wreak havoc at the border checkpoint in Lachin as they wish, but while Azerbaijan is strengthening control for the purpose of security measures, Europe and the West call it a "blockade" in agreement with the Armenians.

Let's take the Aghdam-Khankendi road proposed by the Azerbaijani side, taking into account the favorable conditions. It is known to everyone that Lachin road is a long journey of 51 km from the border crossing point to Khankendi and that the road conditions are extreme. In addition, the Aghdam-Khankendi road proposed by Azerbaijan is 20 km long and consists of a plain. This proposal was approved by Charles Michel, the President of the Council of the European Union, when it was presented at the Brussels meeting. Also, after Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's positive approach to this idea, it seemed inevitable that the proposal should be implemented. But unfortunately, after the meeting, all negotiations remained on the table for Armenia. On the contrary, the Aghdam-Asgaran road was blocked by the separatists and the humanitarian proposal of the Azerbaijan was rejected. Another question arises: when Azerbaijan takes a humanitarian step and the Armenian side rejects the proposal accepted by the President of the Council of the European Union, why do the Western forces ignore it?

Another issue is the Armenian minorities living in Karabakh and the dangerous games of the separatists who keep them as prisoners. It is clear that the remnants of Armenian separatists, who do not think of anyone but themselves, use the people as a shield for themselves. We observed their behavior in the kindergarten where they took refuge under the name of Headquarters during the Patriotic War. Today, the separatists do not hesitate to literally massacre Azerbaijani citizens, even they make unfounded statements to the world on their behalf.

“The Armenians in Karabakh should not follow their so-called leaders. These “leaders” were lying to them all the time - current and previous - before the war, during the war that they were winning. Even when we took control of Shusha, they were telling that Shusha was under their control. They knew it very well. They should not become a hostage of today's clique, which captured power in Karabakh, and whose main objective is to provide their own interest.”

President Ilham Aliyev mentioned these ideas in his interview on international television. The President of Azerbaijan addressed a message to the Armenian national minorities, who are actually considered citizens of Azerbaijan, and urged them not to follow the path of the separatist regime.

The President's call for peace to the Armenian society is also a message about the future. Because the current influence of the separatists is temporary, and the forces hiding behind the peacekeepers in Garabagh today will not be with the people tomorrow. But this will also lead to an unpleasant fate for the future of the residents. Because a message that is not listened to in time is ultimately useless in future. This is exactly what President Ilham Aliyev's statement in his answer to the correspondent's question tries to say:

"Armenian community should not oppose peace initiatives of international community. They should understand that if they don't sign a peace agreement with Azerbaijan, the situation in the future will be unpredictable."

It should be noted that Azerbaijan also promises a safe and prosperous life for Armenian residents. Addressing this issue in his interview, President Ilham Aliyev noted that Azerbaijan is ready to consider the wishes of the Armenian minorities as its citizens in all respects.

“The Karabakh Armenians should understand that being part of the Azerbaijan society with security guarantees, with their rights, including educational, cultural, religious, municipal rights, they will live normal life. They will stop to be a hostage of manipulation.”

However, as mentioned earlier, these promises are not permanent, that is, they are closely related to the choice of Armenian residents. To be more clear, there are two ways: either to be equal with the separatists or to adhere to the words of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The second way is the complete end of the conflict in the region. However, the first way is more dangerous and can end worse for Armenia. The time for politics and diplomacy is long over. The choice is now the simple Armenian society.

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Elnur Enveroglu is AzerNews’ deputy editor-in-chief, follow him on @ElnurMammadli1

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