"In just 44 days, we brought Armenia to its knees. Those days are reflected on the steps of the Victory Arch that I opened in Khankendi today. I am sure you and all the people of Azerbaijan will go and see it," President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev said at a meeting with residents relocated to the city of Aghdam, APA reports.
"Today, the second Victory Arch has been opened in our country, after Baku. Every day of our glorious Victory March is recorded on its steps. We advanced daily, liberating cities and villages, and no force could stop us. However, those who repeatedly wanted to stop us in our tracks during the 44 days tried to, and even did, exert all kinds of pressure on us, voicing various threats and staging provocations. To scare us, to stop us in our tracks, to cut our glorious Victory March short, and to make the conflict eternal – these were the goals of the forces acting against us. Of course, after five years and after we fully restored our sovereignty in 2023 as a result of the anti-terrorist operation, the forces that acted against us were forced to come to terms with the new reality. We forced them to do so, including those who could not accept our Victory, those who could not digest it; the pro-Armenian forces were forced to come to terms with today's realities. The Armenian state had to come to terms with this situation. Those who once said, “Garabagh is Armenia, full stop,” at the stadium in the city of Khankendi not far from here were then forced to say, “Garabagh is Azerbaijan!” In other words, they did not say this of their own free will. We forced them – our people and our state did. So we must never forget this history. Of course, the older generation that lived through those bitter days will never forget that. The younger generation should not forget it either. The generations that will follow them, the future generations, should not forget it either. They should know it. This history should be memorized in schools, universities, and families. In other words, this is our glorious Victory. At the same time, in order to live in peace and security from now on, we must never forget this history," President noted.
