Azernews.Az

BAKU – President Ilham Aliyev has said Azerbaijan hopes the OSCE will prepare an unbiased report on the outcomes of its representatives’ recent visit to the Armenia-occupied territories.

"This is because these are our lands, and the Armenian side has destroyed all buildings there, everything is in shatters, all of our historical monuments, mosques and homes have been ruined and plundered," President Aliyev told a cabinet meeting Wednesday.

"All this has been done by Armenian vandals, and Armenian robbers have stolen and destroyed all material valuables available there [in the occupied territories]."

Azerbaijan and Armenia fought a lengthy war that ended with the signing of a cease-fire in 1994, but Armenia continues to occupy Upper (Nagorno) Karabakh and seven other Azerbaijani districts in defiance of international law. Peace talks are brokered by the OSCE Minsk Group co-chaired by the United States, Russia and France. The co-chairs of the Minsk Group have visited to the Armenia-occupied territories surrounding Azerbaijan’s Nagorno Karabakh region. The co-chairs are now compiling the information gathered during their mission. In conclusion, they will prepare an internal OSCE report, which will be shared with all sides.

President Aliyev said Azerbaijan will never reconcile with the occupation of a part of its territory.

"The crimes committed in the occupied territories show the ugly face of Armenian fascism. We know that. And it’s great that the world community will receive additional information once again. I really hope that this report will be objective and will reflect the realities."

The Field Assessment Mission took place October 7-13. On the mediators' invitation, three experts, including two from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), assisted them in their tasks. The mission provided an important opportunity for the co-chairs to meet with numerous people on the ground and familiarize themselves with the current situation in the territories, in all aspects, including humanitarian needs.

The president noted that Karabakh is a historical Azerbaijani territory, saying that Azerbaijan will never back down from its position of principle and remain determined to restore its territorial integrity.

President Aliyev also said the economic divide between Azerbaijan and Armenia will continue to increase in the coming years, and Azerbaijan, which has formidable military power, will resolve the problem of Armenian occupation.

Aliyev added that Azerbaijan’s defense spending will amount to 2.5 billion manats ($3.125 billion) in 2011.