Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev says he has no plans to start a new war with Armenia.

During an interview with the Azerbaijani press, Aliyev said this is the only reason Baku hasn’t responded to Armenian provocations with force.

Speaking about the so-called Zangezur Corridor, Aliyev said that it will be launched sooner or later, whether Armenia wants it or not. He said such a roadway  is of strategic importance for Baku and "traffic on it should be opened as soon as possible".

Aliyev claimed that the "Zangezur Corridor" project was indicated in the tripartite statement of November 9, 2020.

"Armenia wants to avoid it and does not fulfill the obligations it assumed more than two years ago. But it will not stop Baku, because it is a strategic project not only for Azerbaijan, but also for several neighboring countries," Aliyev told the Trend news agency, confessing that he came up with the Zangezur Corridor terminology.

"It is true, such a term isn’t included in the statement. Thus, I used the term   in the in the geopolitical conversation. However, it is clearly stated there that there should be a transport connection between the western regions of Azerbaijan and the Autonomous Republic of Nakhichevan, and Armenia should ensure it."

Earlier today, Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan, in a public address, ruled out any such corridor in through Armenia.

"We reject the provision of a corridor through the territory of the Republic of Armenia. There was a verbal agreement. There was a promise. Such talk is nonsense," Pashinyan said.

Regarding a planned peace treaty with Armenia, Aliyev said all the conditions for the conclusion of an agreement exist, adding that "Armenia has recognized the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan".

Aliyev also referred to the closure of the Lachin corridor by so-called eco-activists.

“It is shameless to call what is happening in the Lachin corridor a blockade. Whoever does not want to be our citizens, the road is not closed, but open," Aliyev said, answering a reporter’s question as to what steps Azerbaijan will take if the Armenians living in Karabakh do not want to become citizens of Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan blamed France for the Lachin Corridor closure.

‘The current situation is the handiwork of the French authorities. France can live without us, and we can live without France," Aliyev said about the role of France as a Minsk Group co-chair.

Photo: APA agency