Azerbaijan should bring Karabakh to International Court, Erdoğan says in Baku visit

 Photo: AA

Azerbaijan should bring the situation in the Nagorno-Karabakh region to the International Court of Justice to seek compensation, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan suggested yesterday (October 20) during his visit to Azerbaijan.

"It is necessary to ask for compensation by bringing them to the International Court of Justice. It is necessary to corner them by asking for compensation. It is necessary to reintroduce the West to the world," he said at a news conference with his counterpart in Azerbaijan, İlham Aliyev.

"Now I look to my right and left. What did they do to Jabrayil during the occupation period? I asked Aliyev, did the OSCE or the EU come to this place? He said, 'No, they didn't come.' Why didn't they come? Because they will see their own disgrace. They will see what the West did here to Jabrayil and the whole Karabakh by giving support during the occupation process."

The meeting came after the leaders jointly inaugurated the Zangilan International Airport, Azerbaijan's second airport in territories reclaimed from Armenia during the Karabakh War in 2020 fall.

After the 44-day clashes, Baku recaptured several cities, villages, and settlements from Armenia. The conflict ended with a Russia-brokered truce.

Erdoğan said the opening of the second airport in the newly reclaimed territory within a year is "not an easy task that every country can achieve after a troubled period."

Zangezur corridor

Regarding the opening of the Zangezur corridor, which runs through Azerbaijan and the autonomous region of Nakhchivan, Erdoğan said "there is no need to fear."

"This road will contribute to the peace, tranquility and stability of the region and will provide trade and investment opportunities for all countries on the east-west-central corridor route with the Caspian crossing," he added.

The region of Zangezur was part of Azerbaijan, but in the 1920s, the Soviets gave the region to Armenia, where it is now known as Syunik. This deprived Azerbaijan of its direct overland route to the Nakhchivan exclave.

For the corridor, Azerbaijan has focused on planned connections including motorways and a 43-kilometer railway.

Aliyev said in May that Baku agreed with Yerevan on establishing the corridor, including the construction of both railways and highways.

Following the completion of the railway, Azerbaijan will be able to reach Iran, Armenia, and Nakhchivan. The railway would also link Türkiye with Russia through Azerbaijan.

Normalization

The Türkiye-Armenia and Azerbaijan-Armenia normalization processes are progressing in a way that supports each other, Erdoğan noted.

Earlier this month, Erdoğan, Aliyev, and Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan had a brief conversation ahead of the European Political Community summit in Prague. Erdoğan also had a closed-door meeting with Pashinyan, where they discussed the normalization efforts.

Once Armenia and Azerbaijan sign a peace treaty, Türkiye will take steps to open land borders, as well as railways and airways between the two countries, he said after the meeting.

In late 2021, Ankara and Yerevan mutually appointed special representatives to normalize ties. In July, Erdoğan and Pashinyan had a phone conversation following the third meeting of the representatives. (VK)