Azerbaijani president, Ilham Aliyev, has insisted that there can be no special status for Nagorno-Karabakh.
Speaking at the IX Global Baku Forum on "Threats to the Global Order", Aliyev spoke about regional security, arguing that the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh issue would be beneficial for peace and stability in the South Caucasus. He called on Armenia to follow Azerbaijan’s lead and take concrete steps to further the peace process. In particular, he announced that Azerbaijan has already created its commission on a peace agreement, and was waiting on Yerevan to do the same for negations to commence. He accused Armenia of not fulfilling its obligations under the tripartite agreements.
Speaking on the activities of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, he urged the organisation to “retire” in light of the Ukraine war, which he said has made it impossible for the co-Chairs to come together.
Aliyev discussed the rights of Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh, stating that the wholeheartedly supported the statement by Charles Michel, the president of the European Council, on the importance of the rights of all citizens living within the region. He added that “representatives of all peoples in Azerbaijan are equal, including the Armenians living in the country. Yes, issues of rights and security will be provided from our side”.
The Azerbaijani president warned that pushing the issue of status may lead to a new conflict. He noted that there had been a "verbal agreement", not to discus the issue, but said that this had not been respected. Aliyev went on to state that “if Armenia continues to question our territorial integrity, Azerbaijan will have no choice but to question Armenia’s territorial integrity”, urging Yerevan not to pursue this “useless and dangerous approach”.