Hikmet Hajiyev: Azerbaijan has proven its commitment to the peace process with Armenia in practice

The Armenian-Azerbaijani peace process does not consist solely of statements on paper. Azerbaijan has confirmed its commitment to peace through practical steps.

As Report informs, this was stated by the assistant to the president of Azerbaijan – head of the Foreign Policy Department of the Presidential Administration Hikmet Hajiyev to the Turkish newspaper Milliyet.

Hajiyev noted that despite the genocide committed by Armenia against Azerbaijan, Baku demonstrated a commitment exclusively to peace.

"Currently, peace prevails in the South Caucasus. If the Armenian-Azerbaijani war had continued, the sparks from conflicts occurring among our neighbors could have spread to our region as well," he said.

The presidential assistant also positively assessed the adoption by the current Armenian authorities of the concept of "real Armenia" as a fundamental approach.

"We recognize that the Armenian side has also accepted the new geopolitical reality and is shaping its policy in this direction. They understood that the occupation policy pursued over many years held them hostage, and they realized the erroneousness of that path. Now Armenia recognizes how important relations with Azerbaijan and Turkey are for its own development," Hajiyev noted.

He also stated that the opening of the Zangezur corridor is part of the new geopolitical reality and serves the interests of both Azerbaijan and Armenia: "Because Armenia also understands that having transit opportunities in the region is important for its own development."