Azernews.Az

The top military commander in the breakaway Azerbaijani region of Upper (Nagorno) Garabagh has brushed aside Azerbaijan's continuing threats to take back the region by force, RFE/RL's Armenian Service reports.
Lieutenant-General Movses Hakobian said on Wednesday that the rhetoric from Baku is mainly for domestic political gain.
"The resumption of the war would be unfavorable only for Azerbaijan," Hakobian told the press. "It would be favorable for us because we [will] manage to easily achieve our objectives."
"And I think in that case we would solve the Garabagh-Azerbaijani conflict once and for all," added the general, who played a prominent role in the 1991-1994 war.
Hakobian's remarks were made on the 16th anniversary of the signing of a Russian-mediated, cease-fire agreement that ended the Armenian-Azerbaijani war over Upper Garabagh. His statements echo those made by Armenian leaders recently.
President Serzh Sarkisian said earlier this year that an Azerbaijani assault on Armenia and Garabagh would trigger "serious counterattacks." Defense Minister Seyran Ohanian similarly stated in January that Armenian forces have significantly beefed up fortifications around Garabagh in recent years and are prepared for renewed fighting.
Hakobian said the unrecognized republic’s army has received new military hardware and ammunition this year. "[We] have had quite a serious success in acquiring air-defense systems," he said.
Azerbaijani leaders have long warned they will resort to military action over Garabagh if the long-running Armenian-Azerbaijani negotiations fail to yield a settlement acceptable to Baku. Azerbaijani Defense Minister Safar Abiyev spoke in late February of the growing likelihood of "a great war" with Armenia.
20 percent of Azerbaijan’s territory, including Upper Garabagh and seven adjacent districts, has been under Armenian occupation for nearly two decades. Defying international law, the separatist regime in Upper Garabagh declared so-called independence in 1991, which has not been recognized by the world community. *