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Azerbaijan denies Syria fighters deployed in Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

October 6, 2020 at 1:12 pm

Members of the armed forces of Nagorno-Karabakh at their post along the line of contact with Azerbaijani forces on 21 April 2015 [Brendan Hoffman/Getty Images]

A senior Azeri official on Sunday denied reports that Syrian fighters had been fighting alongside Azerbaijan’s forces in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

In an interview with RT, assistant of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan and head of the Foreign Policy Affairs Department of the Presidential Administration, Hikmet Hajiyev described the allegations as “fake”, explaining that the deployment of Syrian fighters in the region would have been an “illogical” step because the Azeri forces have more knowledge of the terrain and are more prepared for mountain warfare.

The official also denied reports claiming that Turkey was participating militarily in the fighting in Karabakh. “Azerbaijan does not need the participation of any third party. We have strong armed forces. We have enough of our own resources. Azerbaijan has a population of 10 million, and we also have enough military reserves,” he explained.

Earlier, an aide to Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev demanded that France apologise after President Emmanuel Macron claimed Syrian fighters had been deployed to participate in the hostilities in Karabakh.

Media outlets reported that Turkey had sent dozens of Syrian militants to fight alongside the Azerbaijani forces.

READ: Turkey ready to support Azerbaijan in conflict with Armenia, says FM