Sat 03 October 2020:
Turkey is and will always be there for Azerbaijan, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Friday, adding that the struggle will continue until Nagorno-Karabakh is saved from the Armenian occupation.
Border clashes first broke out Sunday when Armenian forces targeted Azerbaijani civilian settlements and military positions, leading to casualties.
Azerbaijan’s parliament declared a state of war in some of its cities and regions following Armenia’s border violations and attacks in occupied Nagorno-Karabakh.
On Monday, Azerbaijan declared partial military mobilization amid the clashes.
Armenia has once again attacked Azerbaijani territories while the issue of Karabakh, which Yerevan occupied with “despicable massacres,” is yet to be resolved, Erdogan said.
“But, this time [Armenia] has encountered an unexpected end,” he added.
“The brotherly state of Azerbaijan has started a great operation both to defend its own territories and to liberate the occupied Karabakh.”
Erdogan underlined that the Azerbaijani army, which has so far been advancing against Armenian forces, has liberated many areas from occupation.
“Turkey stands with and will continue to stand with friendly and brotherly Azerbaijan with all our means and all our heart,” he said.
The eruption of crisis zones in areas adjacent to Turkey from Syria to the Mediterranean to the Caucasus points to attempts to hold Turkey under siege, Erdogan added.
For Azerbaijan to agree with a cease-fire, Armenia must withdraw its forces from occupied Azerbaijani territories, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu also said Friday.
Speaking at a joint news conference with his Italian counterpart Luigi Di Maio, Çavuşoğlu said Turkey stands in solidarity with Azerbaijan against its struggle for the occupied territories of Nagorno-Karabakh.
“If the international community wants to do something about Upper Karabakh, they should get Armenia to leave Azerbaijani lands at once,” he said.
