Azerbaijani President Aliyev Announces Infrastructure Developments in Karabakh

The President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, has stated that between 2021 and 2023, three international airports will be constructed in the "liberated territories" of Nagorno-Karabakh. Aliyev mentioned that the first airport will be located in Varanda (Fizuli) and will be operational by the end of this year, the second in Kavsakan (Zangelan) next year, and the third in Lachin, which is expected to be completed in 2023.

According to panorama.am, this information was reported by Interfax.az. "Thus, the total number of international airports in Azerbaijan will reach nine," said Aliyev during a joint press conference with Charles Michel, the President of the European Council, in Baku on Sunday.

Aliyev emphasized that opening communication routes in the South Caucasus is one of the critical issues for post-conflict settlement and is stipulated by the trilateral declaration of November 10, 2020. "The opening of communications will allow Azerbaijan to access the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic through Armenian territory. Moreover, we have begun the construction of a railway toward the border with Armenia. We need to lay more than 100 km of main and railway lines in our territory, and about 40 km in Armenia," he said.

At the same time, Aliyev added that all communications in the region should be opened simultaneously. "The four countries in the region—Azerbaijan, Iran, Russia, and Turkey—are providing significant support for this approach. We expect only a positive response from Armenia, but this response should not be selective. All communications in the region should be opened at the same time, and there should be no discrimination in this matter," Aliyev stated.