Negative French attitude towards Azerbaijan 'not coincidence': President Aliyev

MOSCOW (AA) - Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said on Tuesday that France's negative attitude towards Baku is not a "coincidence."

He was speaking at a meeting in Baku with Masim Mamedov, Azerbaijan's representative for Lachin region, which is part of the Eastern Zangezur economic region of Azerbaijan. Lachin links Karabakh with Armenia and was liberated after nearly three decades of Armenian occupation in 2020.

"International mediators -- the former OSCE Minsk Group -- actually tried to consolidate (Armenia's) occupation (of Lachin region) by conducting talks," Aliyev said, adding that Armenia considered the return of Lachin district to Azerbaijan "unacceptable," and was enjoying the support of mediators.

"Now everything has become clear, this unfair and negative attitude of France towards Azerbaijan," he said.

According to Aliyev, liberation of the Lachin district was one of the main goals of the Karabakh war, which ended after a Russian-brokered peace agreement.

Azerbaijan liberated several cities, villages and settlements from Armenian occupation during the 44 days of clashes in the fall on 2020.

"Over the two and a half years that have passed since the end of the war -- the Second Karabakh War, dirty actions are being committed against us, groundless accusations are being made.

"All this is obvious, including a number of resolutions adopted by the European Parliament against Azerbaijan, which are again the product of a pro-Armenian, bribery and anti-Azerbaijani group, and French lawmakers play a leading role here," he stressed.

The president said Azerbaijan felt a biased attitude during the years of occupation as well, "but not to such an extent."

"We never imagined that countries could be so hypocritical and deceitful. They can look a person in the face, say one thing, and do another behind his back," he said.

Aliyev emphasized that attempts to change Azerbaijan's position on Karabakh will fail.

"No one can change our will. No one can speak to us in the language of an ultimatum. We proved it to Armenia in the Second Karabakh War, we proved it to the patrons of Armenia for two and a half years after the war. We defeated them and once again showed the whole world that we are achieving and will continue to achieve what we want," he said.

"The Armenian leadership, which declared at the time 'Karabakh is Armenia', was forced to accept its defeat, and on Nov. 10, 2020, Armenia signed an act of capitulation ... This is our great historical victory."