By Shahid Shah

Raising the Azerbaijani flag in the city of Khankendi by President Ilham Aliyev destroyed the plans of the imperialist circles, which have been measured and implemented step by step for hundreds of years. With this, official Baku demonstrated to the whole world that it has de facto and de jure restored its authority over all its sovereign territories and that there is no prospect of separatism in the territories of Azerbaijan.

Historically, the idea of reuniting Azerbaijan under a single flag has existed since the Khanate period. Guba Khanate, Garabagh Khanate, as well as a number of khanates in South Azerbaijan, made various attempts to realize this national idea. Despite the failure of these attempts, it proved that such a desire still remained. And this could not help but worry the external forces, who were afraid of the possibility of the emergence of a united and strong Azerbaijan again, and they started comprehensive activities to eliminate this possibility.

With the signing of the Kurakchay treaty in 1805, the foundation of Garabagh’s de facto colonization and future military-political clashes was laid. Fertile conditions were created for the emergence of separatism and ethnic conflicts in the region with the Turkmanchay treaty in 1828 and the Adirna agreement in 1829. According to Article XV of the Turkmenchay treaty, the Shah undertook to create all the legal and economic opportunities for the unhindered migration of Armenians from Iran to the historical territories of Azerbaijan. Thanks to all these agreements, in which the Azerbaijani people did not participate, but were directly related to their fate, the most favorable opportunities of the time were created for the migration of up to 200 thousand Armenians from the Ottoman Empire and the territories of Iran to the historical lands of Azerbaijan. By transferring these Armenians to the lands of the Iravan khanate, Garabagh, efforts were made to bring about a demographic change in the region, to complete the Gregorianization and Armenianization of the aboriginal Christian Albanians.

However, in the past period, it was not possible to make Armenians a majority in most of the mentioned regions. Whether in Garabagh or Zangazur, Azerbaijanis remained the majority until the ethnic cleansing policy that began in the late 80s. Despite the fact that the Armenians invaded their ancestral lands, the Azerbaijani people were patient with what was happening, and friendly relations were even established between the two peoples in the past period. However, these relations continued until the end of the 1980s, when the USSR was on the verge of collapse, and at the beginning of the 1990s, the hatred of the extreme nationalist Armenians and Dashnaks for the Azerbaijani people was fueled by foreign circles, including the imperialist centers in France. The political conflict was raised to the ethnic level when the separatist Armenians committed the most brutal massacres in modern history in Khojaly, Meshali, as well as in other villages and towns, and displaced Azerbaijanis from their homes where they had lived for a thousand years. Armenian separatism developed beyond the administrative borders of the former NKAO to the occupation of the surrounding 7 regions inhabited by Azerbaijanis due to the anarchy and political incompetence that existed in Azerbaijan in the early 90s.

The Azerbaijani people, understanding the pain of war well, was in favor of peace in resolving the conflict and relied on mediator for about 30 years. It is understandable that the activities of these mediators, in fact, weren’t for establishing historical justice during the past period, but were calculated to keep the leverage in the region by freezing the conflict and postponing its solution. It became clear that the institution of mediation was in fact, the number one enemy to the resolve of the conflict since the beginning. In this regard, these mediators also bear responsibility for the death of every Azerbaijani soldier, officer, and civilian in the past period. In 2020, Azerbaijan’s patience exceeded its limit and the iron fist of people-government crushed the head of separatism. Most likely, this was unexpected for separatists and for their patrons, because they had already begun to perceive the concept of patience as fear. During the last periods of occupation, the statements made in Yerevan, Shusha, and Khankendi also showed this, they had already begun to imagine their tanks in Baku and tried to to humiliate the Azerbaijani people at every opportunity. Finally, the dignity of our people was restored thanks to the 44-day war and the military-political activities that took place afterwards. In the past 3 years, Azerbaijan has started to return what has been taken from it in 300 years with the strength of its own wrist and these events prove that the statehood and military traditions of the Azerbaijani nation are great and alive as they were thousand years ago. Plus, it’s more powerful this time, because now the people-government unity is stronger compared to any phase of history. With the Azerbaijan flag being risen in Khankandi, all the forms, manifestations, and symbolism of separatism in the territories of Azerbaijan were effectively put an end to and such "leaders" were reminded that the place they deserve is the detention center. This was a strong message to both external circles and also to those who dream of revanchism that Azerbaijan will never give up its territories at any cost and such activities will sooner or later face the most undignified defeat.

It was clear once again that the only way to live in the territory of Azerbaijan is to accept its sovereignty, its Constitution, its flag, the supremacy of its law and to hold it supreme. When the President of Azerbaijan stood in military uniform in front of the building where the separatists used to sit and made immoral statements against Azerbaijan and gave decisive messages, it was the moment when the Azerbaijani people’s dream, which started from the khanate period, came true. In this regard, in Khankandi, President Ilham Aliyev raised both the Azerbaijani glorious flag and national pride to the skies.