BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 16. The Armenian
government supports actions aimed at increasing the feeling of
hatred towards Azerbaijan, the statement of the State Committee for
Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons of the Republic of
Azerbaijan in connection with the burning of the Azerbaijani flag
at the European Weightlifting Championships in Armenia says,
Trend reports.
The statement says that Azerbaijanophobia has intensified in
Armenia in recent days, which by all means impedes the
establishment of peace and tranquility in the South Caucasus. On
live broadcast of the opening ceremony of the next European
Weightlifting Championship in Yerevan, in the eyes of the
international community, one of the Armenian residents defiantly
burned the Azerbaijani flag. The State Committee, on behalf of
almost a million Azerbaijani refugees and internally displaced
persons who were forced to leave their native lands as a result of
Armenia’s policy of deportation and occupation, strongly condemns
this action.
“After Azerbaijan, on its own, put an end to the 30-year
occupation of Armenia, it demonstrates the political will and
determination to normalize bilateral relations as the initiator of
peacebuilding in the region. However, the government of Armenia is
not only trying to slow down this process under various pretexts,
moreover, it ideologically supports actions aimed at further
strengthening the feeling of hatred towards our country and our
people in society, and does not want to hinder such actions.
At a time when the Azerbaijani government is taking the
necessary measures to restore and reconstruct the territories
liberated from occupation, the return of the original inhabitants
of these territories, the reintegration of the Armenian community
of Karabakh, the continuation of the policy of interethnic hatred
and discrimination in Armenia call into question the process of
peacebuilding in the region, which the international community
waiting with great interest.
Despite the good intentions of the Azerbaijani government and
the public regarding the possibility of the coexistence of
Azerbaijanis and Armenians, the fact that the revanchist forces in
Armenia do not stop provocations and hostility indicates that they
do not want to allow this intention to be realized under any
circumstances.
It is a historical fact that Armenia supports terrorism and
terrorists, and it is doubtful that it can safely host any
international events, including sports competitions, on its
territory. The burning of the Azerbaijani flag and the praise of
this heinous act as the heroism of the person who committed this
provocation clearly show this.
Azerbaijani refugees and internally displaced persons call on
the international community to demand an end to the acts that
generate national hatred and discrimination in Armenia, and to
demand, on the basis of existing legal norms, the punishment of the
person who burned the Azerbaijani flag.
In addition, international sports organizations should refuse to
host any prestigious competitions in Armenia, as well as suspend
the European Weightlifting Championship in Yerevan and annul its
results.
The Azerbaijanis, who are preparing to return to their homeland,
to the liberated Eastern Zangezur and Karabakh, hope that peace and
security in the region will be fully ensured, and Armenia’s
attempts to disrupt this process will be resolutely suppressed by
the international community,” the statement says.
