President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan on Friday called Armenia “undeveloped,” “dependent on Russia” and “Russia’s slave,” saying that Armenians need psychological assistance and that Armenian history was fake and fabricated. He also called Armenia’s former president Serzh Sarkisian a “war criminal.”
The Azerbaijani leader’s latest rant against Armenia took place while speaking to foreign reporters and experts before meeting with Toivo Klaar, the European Union’s Special Representative to the Caucasus, with whom he discussed normalization of relations with Armenia and talks regarding a so-called peace treaty.
Earlier on Friday, Aliyev announced that he would not meet with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on December 7 in Brussels, saying Armenia was attempting to thwart peace negotiations because Yerevan requested the presence of President Emmanuel Macron of France at the scheduled meeting.
Aliyev also told the foreign reports that he had warned Pashinyan after he became Armenia’s prime minister that Azerbaijan will not tolerate occupations. “We will destroy you,” Aliyev said he told Pashinyan, saying that was neither posturing or showmanship. “We simply knew what we are capable of and what Armenia can do,” the Azerbaijani leader said.
Aliyev added that Pashinyan only changed his rhetoric after the 2020 war, saying the Armenian leader does not understand how honest we were being. “Maybe, [he] needs another cold shower,” Aliyev said of Pashinyan.
The Azerbaijani leader, once again, stressed that the so-called “Zangezur Corridor” will become a reality despite Yerevan’s numerous claims that such a such a plan has not been discussed during any discussions with mediators.
Aliyev insisted that Yerevan cannot block this demand by Azerbaijan, adding that Armenia’s other neighbor, Iran, will not become an obstacle to this plan. He said that currently Baku and Moscow are in talks about the “corridor,” and because Armenia is a “Russian satellite” he is not wasting his time to engage in talks with Yerevan about this matter.
He said he believes that Iran will not become an obstacle because it, too, is interested in opening of transit routes in the region. “These plans are not directed against any country. On the contrary they will only work toward everyone’s interests,” Aliyev said.
Iranian leaders, including the country’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, on numerous occasions have warned about any changes in the current borders and stressed the need for respect of nations’ territorial integrity.