Çavuşoglu told Anadolu that “Turkey will do whatever it takes” if Baku asks Ankara for support. But he made it clear that he didn’t think it would be necessary. According to him, Azerbaijan is fighting the occupiers of his country and is able to defend his rights in Nagorno-Karabakh. “Their own forces are ample enough to fight the illegal Armenian occupation.”
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He stressed that Azerbaijan is fighting to protect its territory. “Where in the world is the occupied and the occupiers treated the same?” The Turkish foreign minister asked a rhetorical question, adding that countries demanding a ceasefire “should urge Armenia to withdraw from the occupied territories belonging to Azerbaijan.”
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Nagorno-Karabakh, inhabited by Armenia, is part of Azerbaijan, but has declared independence and maintains it with the support of Armenia. Fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces at the disputed mountain enclave continues for the fourth day today, claiming dozens of deaths, including civilians. Baku and Yerevan mobilized the reserves and accused each other of attacks.
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Macron criticized Turkey
“I have taken note of Turkey’s political statements (in favor of Azerbaijan), which I believe are ill-considered and dangerous,” French President Emmanuel Macron told a news conference in Latvia. He added that he would talk about this issue with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday evening and with US President Donald Trump on Thursday.
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The Armenian Ministry of Defense announced on Tuesday that a Turkish F-16 fighter, which had arrived from Azerbaijani airspace, had shot down an Armenian fighter Su-25 over Armenia. The pilot of the hit machine died. The report was subsequently denied by Turkey. “Armenia should withdraw from the occupied territory, instead of resorting to cheap propaganda tricks,” said Turkish spokesman Fahrettin Altun. The Yerevan report was later denied by Baku.
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Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said no F-16s had been sent over Nagorno-Karabakh. He also denied that Syrian fighters had been sent to the area, saying there was no evidence. “Turkey is our brother country and our ally. He only gives us moral support and we are grateful for his solidarity, “Aliyev told Russian journalists on Tuesday. He rejected any talks on the area, saying that Armenia’s demands were unacceptable.
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A direct Turkish military intervention in the conflict would be a major turning point, the AFP agency warned. She added that an open war between Armenia and Azerbaijan would threaten the destabilization of the South Caucasus and the withdrawal of regional powers, especially Turkey and Russia.
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Moscow, which is considered a regional arbitrator, has called for an end to hostilities, as has the West. In a unanimous statement, the UN Security Council called for an “immediate end to the fighting”.
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