President Ilham Aliyev: Extensive reconstruction efforts are underway in Karabakh and East Zangezur

“Extensive restoration and reconstruction efforts are currently underway across all of Karabakh and East Zangezur, liberated from occupation,” said President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev during his speech at the 17th Summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO).

The head of state recalled that Armenia occupied nearly 20 percent of Azerbaijan’s territories for almost 30 years, carried out ethnic cleansing, and displaced more than one million Azerbaijanis from their ancestral lands. The President emphasized that the Azerbaijani people and state never reconciled with the occupation.

“We repeatedly warned Armenia and its backers that if Armenia did not voluntarily withdraw from the occupied territories, we would restore our territorial integrity by military means. Unfortunately, Armenia and its supporters did not take our warnings seriously, and as a result, they faced the consequences,” President Ilham Aliyev said.