Armenia has gained nothing from the occupation of Azerbaijani lands, it has only lost, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Feb. 25.

He made the remarks at the ADA University in Baku, Azerbaijan while delivering a lecture titled “Turkish foreign policy’s vision of cooperation perspectives on the Caucasus and Azerbaijan.”

Cavusoglu said the entire world community and all the documents adopted at international level unequivocally recognize that Nagorno-Karabakh belongs to Azerbaijan.

“What has Armenia gained from occupation of Karabakh? Armenia has only lost. Indeed, exactly because of the Karabakh conflict, Armenia couldn’t sign an association agreement with the EU. Yerevan continues to pay for this problem today,” said the minister.

Cavusoglu said the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is the biggest problem on the path to peace and stability in the South Caucasus.

“We want peace, tranquillity and stability in the region, neighbors must respect the territorial integrity of each other. This primarily relates to Armenia,” said Cavusoglu

“Tomorrow is the day of Khojaly tragedy, when 613 people were killed. We remember the martyrs, we will not forget them and will not let to forget,” he said.

The minister said that today all those who didn’t timely respond to the events in Nagorno-Karabakh, are already paying the price.

“This conflict is one of the biggest problems in the region, it hinders the development of the region,” Cavusoglu said.

He added that Turkey wants a quick resolution to the conflict.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

On February 25-26, 1992, the Armenian armed forces, together with the 366th infantry regiment of Soviet troops stationed in Khankendi committed an act of genocide against the population of the Azerbaijani town of Khojaly.

As a result of the massacre, some 613 people were killed, including 63 children, 106 women and 70 old people. Eight families were totally exterminated, 130 children lost one parent and 25 children lost both. A total of 487 civilians became disabled as a result of the onslaught. Some 1,275 innocent residents were taken hostage, while the fate of 150 people remains unknown.

The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council`s four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.

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