Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev has sparked a diplomatic row by labeling Armenia a “fascist state” in an interview with local media. He claimed that Armenia has been led by individuals with a fascist ideology for nearly three decades, shaping the country in their image.
Aliyev urged the destruction of fascism, warning that it would be either dismantled by Armenia’s leadership or by Azerbaijan. “We have no other way out” he said.
Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian responded calmly to the accusations, suggesting that Azerbaijan’s statement was an attempt to legitimize escalation in the region. Pashinian believed that aggressive rhetoric is expected to elicit an aggressive response from Yerevan, allowing Baku to escalate the situation further and spread false information about Armenian army violations of the ceasefire to justify a new escalation.
Armenia, however, will not take this path, Pashinian said, and will instead continue to pursue a peace strategy and implement the peace agenda. The Prime Minister emphasized that Armenia will use the language of dialogue, not aggression, and expressed a willingness to understand the reasons behind Azerbaijan’s perception of Armenia.
Pashinian acknowledged that a similar perception of Azerbaijan exists in Armenia, and that these mutual perceptions have contributed to the years-long conflict. He added that the peace agenda aims to address these perceptions and that if Azerbaijan responds positively to Armenia’s proposed solutions for the two unresolved articles of the peace treaty, Armenia is ready to sign the agreement.