(MENAFN- AzerNews)
Elnur Enveroglu read more Initiated by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Ankara played
host to the March 16 Extraordinary Summit of the Heads of State of
the Organization of Turkic States designed to rally international
support for Turkiye's post-quake rebuilding efforts.
Addressing the event, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan thanked
President Ilham Aliyev for his initiative to hold the Extraordinary
Summit, entitled“Disaster-Emergency Management and Humanitarian
Assistance”.
Speaking at the summit, the Azerbaijani president blamed Armenia
for the 30-year-long occupation and deliberate destruction of
hundreds of cities and villages, historical and religious sites,
and cemeteries.
'Foreign experts describe the destroyed city of Agdam as a
`Hiroshima of the Caucasus',' the president said, elaborating that
Armenians destroyed 65 out of 67 mosques in Karabakh and East
Zangezur, and the remaining two were used as pig and cow sheds. The
president added that because of the Armenian occupation, Azerbaijan
is now among the countries most contaminated with landmines and
after the second Karabakh war, i.e., since November 2020, nearly
300 Azerbaijanis have been killed or seriously injured by mine
explosions.
'Although Armenia recognized Azerbaijan's territorial integrity
and sovereignty in Prague and Sochi in 2022, it has not yet fully
withdrawn its troops from the territory of Azerbaijan. Illegal
Armenian detachments and criminal elements still remain in
Karabakh. Armenia also evades the obligation to open the Zangazur
corridor,' the president added.
In remarks about the summit, Turkish political analyst,
a professor at Turkiye's Dumlupinar University Husamettin
Inac , emphasized once again that the solution to the
Karabakh problem does not lie with Russia or Europe - the only
decisive factor here can be the joint effort of the Turkic-speaking
nations. On why the summit is crucial, Inac opined that the unity
of the Turkic nations can be conducive to restoring peace in
Karabakh and in the region amid Armenia's obstruction of the
processes.
“The extraordinary Summit of the Heads of State of the
Organization of Turkic States held at the initiative of Azerbaijani
President Ilham Aliyev is of great importance. As you know, the
successive earthquakes that hit Turkiye in February and the massive
floods that occurred in Turkey's Adiyaman and Şanlı Urfa provinces
a few days ago caused serious economic, political, and humanitarian
damages to Turkiye. All this was an extremely crushing blow for
Turkiye. However, I must note that against the background of what
happened, the Turkic-speaking nations did not remain indifferent.
On the contrary, holding such an event to support Turkiye paves the
way for closer relations between Turkic-speaking nations,” the
expert said.
Inac added that the summit once again proved that the
Turkic-speaking countries as a joint body not only play the role of
undertaking political commitment but also have the function of a
beating heart within that whole body.
Speaking to Azernews on Karabakh and
Pashinyan's abortive maneuvers in the political arena, Husamettin Inac said that Armenia was ready to
snatch at a chance and divert the processes for its own favor when
it comes to Karabakh's future.
“Currently facing a desperate situation, the Pashinyan
government is delaying the peace process. In a way, this meeting
took a very big step towards rendering harmless the so-called
authority of the separatist regime in Karabakh, which is the
eternal territory of Azerbaijan. The fact that Pashinyan completely
closed his ears to Russia, came under the umbrella of Europe, as
well as brought pro-France and pro-Armenian representatives to the
border region clearly reveals Armenia's belligerent stance.
Although Armenia's game regarding Karabakh is not for the benefit
of either side, it aims at least to display it to international
organizations in the form of a so-called state. The summit
emphasized once again that the solution to the Karabakh problem
does not lie with Russia or Europe - the only decisive factor here
can be the joint effort of the Turkic-speaking nations. The
resolution of the Karabakh issue is interrelated to the Zangazur
road, which will connect the entire Turkic world, and this was the
main topic of the summit. Tukiye and our entire partners know that
many works related to Zangazur have been completed as a result of
the efforts of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. Putting this
road into operation is already considered the next main step,” the
expert added
In addition to his comment, the professor added that Turkiye is
actively engaged in the upcoming presidential elections, drawing
attention to difficulties triggered by the devastating quakes.
“The presidential elections in Turkiye are about in two months'
time. As for candidates, the rating of the ruling AKP was quite
high in the period before the earthquake. You know, after the
earthquake, being under western dictate, the alliance of 6
opposition parties formed against Erdogan's AKP is trying to
discredit the current government by spreading a lot of
misinformation about the government. However, over the last few
days, such propaganda has been overcome, and the rapid start of
restoration activities in Turkiye and the reconstruction of cities
managed to expose the slanders of the opposition once again. We
hope that in the next two months, things will speed up and people's
well-being will be brought back to normal also thanks to the
consistent aids to Turkiye.”
The political analyst, who prioritizes the interests of the
West, noted that the elections in Turkiye are very important for
the West. He noted that 'certain forces, especially those waiting
for Erdogan's defeat in the elections, are assuring the main
opposition in Turkiye of all financial support'.
“As regards the scheduled presidential elections, it is not an
ordinary event. Here, especially, the West has great interests, and
of course, these interests are the interests of those who want to
get rid of Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and here the opposition alliance
that serves the west cannot be overlooked. As for the final result,
it is very difficult to predict how the current elections will end.
In elections, every single day counts and can be crucial for
changes in results. However, in my opinion, I can say that today
the society in Turkiye trusts and sympathizes with Erdogan, who is
currently in power.”
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Elnur Enveroglu is AzerNews' staff journalist, follow him on
@elnurmammadli1