Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev took the stage at the U.N. General Assembly in New York City, emphasizing his country’s “victory” in a recent conflict with Armenia over the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Framing the military campaign as a patriotic effort to reclaim territory he said was illegally occupied, Aliyev celebrated Azerbaijan’s success while highlighting improved post-war relations with Armenia. He also expressed gratitude to former U.S. President Donald Trump for mediating the peace process.
In his address, Aliyev described the campaign as a “liberation” against occupation, portraying the operation as a defense of Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity. Human rights organizations, however, condemned the forced displacement of ethnic Armenians during the campaign, labeling it as ethnic cleansing. The U.S. State Department stopped short of using that term but cited reports criticizing the expulsion of civilians. Testimonies to the U.S. Congress in 2023 warned of potential human rights violations, with concerns about forced displacement or worse atrocities.
Aliyev emphasized Azerbaijan’s long-standing claim over Nagorno-Karabakh, framing the conflict as a response to what he described as past “ethnic cleansing” against Azerbaijanis by Armenia after the Soviet Union’s collapse. He criticized the United Nations for failing to resolve the dispute and defended Azerbaijan’s actions as compliant with international law, claiming protection of civilians and avoidance of non-military targets during the 44-day conflict.
The president noted that Turkey had played a significant role in supporting Azerbaijan, particularly through the use of advanced drones, a technology that had already reshaped modern warfare in the 2020 conflict and later in the Russia-Ukraine war.
