Aliyev admits Azerbaijan worked to boost number of Azeris in KarabakhNovember 22, 2019 - 17:46 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has admitted the fact of a deliberate change in the demography of Nagorno Karabakh aimed at increasing the number of Azeri residents. “Under the great leader Heydar Aliyev (Ilham’s Father - Ed.), the percentage of the Azerbaijani population in Nagorno Karabakh increased sharply, doubled,” Aliyev was quoted as saying by Day.az. Heydar Aliyev himself said in an interview in 2002: “I am talking of the time, when I was first secretary, and helped the development of Nagorno Karabakh a lot. “At the same time I tried to change the demography there. Nagorno Karabakh raised the issue of founding a higher education institute there, a university. Everybody was against it. I had a think about it and decided to found it. However, with a proviso that there should be three sectors there — Azerbaijani, Russian and Armenian. It was founded. “We sent Azeris from the neighboring areas there, and not to Baku. We opened a large shoe factory there. “By doing this and other things, I tried to increase the number of Azeris there, and reduce the number of the Armenians in Nagorno Karabakh. Those who worked in Nagorno Karabakh at the time know about it”. Nearing the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1989, the Nagorno Karabakh Autonomous Oblast boasted a population of 145,593 Armenians (76.4%), 42,871 Azeris (22.4%), and several thousand Kurds, Russians, Greeks, and Assyrians. Top stories Six total incidents have burned 19 old-growth trees. Friday night 8 trees were torched along the beautiful main entrance. The EU does not intend to conduct military exercises with Armenia, Lead Spokesperson for EU Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Peter Stano says. Hikmet Hajiyev has said that there is no place for USAID operation in Azerbaijan any longer. A telephone conversation between Putin and Pashinyan before the CSTO summit is not planned, Peskov says. Partner news | Ex-Karabakh leader moved to solitary confinement cell in Baku, his son says David Vardanyan is the son of former Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan who who is currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan. Freedom House concerned by mounting reports of police violence in Armenia Freedom House urged Armenian authorities to investigate this pattern of excessive force and inhumane treatment. Ex-President: Only removal of “defeatist” rulers can save Armenia Former Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan has shared a message on the 109th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Pashinyan: We must stop searching for homeland, we have found that homeland Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has shared a message on the 109th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. |