Azerbaijan must expose 'real face' of Armenia

Tue 18 January 2011 11:22 GMT | 13:22 Local Time

News.Az interviews independent MP Fuad Muradov, one of the younger members of parliament.

The Azerbaijani president has repeatedly said that the use of force to liberate our occupied lands cannot be ruled out. As someone who takes part in discussions of these issues in the parliaments of other countries, what is your attitude towards this?

I can quote the supreme commander that the majority of the Azerbaijani population sees the Karabakh conflict as a priority to be settled. The speeches of the Azerbaijani president also make it clear that it is the most important issue for him and he is trying his best to solve it. The resolution of this problem is a foreign policy priority. People are interested in the approach of the UN Security Council, European Parliament and other key international structures to this conflict. It is clear to everyone, including international organizations, that Armenia's current position is destructive. But Armenia's attempts to preserve the status quo on this issue are obvious. Neither Armenia nor international organizations are taking decisive steps to solve the conflict. There are some forces that are trying to preserve the so-called peace, protracting the resolution of the issue. They believe that the preservation of peace is the most important step.

But there are forces in the international arena who do not accept Armenia's occupying policy. The parliaments of some European countries have spoken on this issue. If we take a deeper analysis, it should be noted that, along with international organizations, there is also the approach of separate leading states to this conflict - for example, Russia and the United States who are active in both the UN and OSCE. It should be noted that these countries have corporate interests but their people have a different opinion on the conflict. Therefore, our task is not only to ensure that the issue remains on the international agenda but also to bring the true position of Azerbaijan to the attention of the world community. There are many countries that cooperate with us in most spheres, but adhere to a position of not offending any of the parties. I think our next steps must be a policy aimed at exposing the real face of Armenia: for example, Armenia's position on the updated Madrid principles, when Azerbaijan and international mediators agree on the principles while Armenia protracts the solution, clearly shows the real face of the country's policy.

Are we ready for war?

If we want peace, we have to be ready for war. This thesis is spread throughout the world. I think our army is fully ready for this. We often visit military units and what we see there allows us to say that everything is all right in our armed forces. We also meet other categories of the population. For example, when we meet refugees and displaced persons, they say they are "grateful to the president for creating living conditions" but they want to return home. Especially the older generation wants to be buried in their native land.

What can you say about the young people?

Azerbaijani young people are currently active. The younger generation has a broad outlook. Three out of ten employees in state structures used to be members of the younger generation, but now their presence in state structures has risen significantly and it is possible to say that seven out of 10 employees are young specialists. The younger generation is seeking development, studying at prestigious universities and so on. Of course, the young people are ready to liberate our lands more than others and are prepared to execute the order of the supreme commander at any moment.

Emil Guliyev
News.Az