No:235/20, Head of the Press Service Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan Leyla Abdullayeva answers the question of the media

Question: Russia's “Nezavisimaya Gazeta” newspaper reported that Syrian fighters were allegedly brought to Azerbaijan and that they were preparing for a "rapid attack" against Armenia. We would like to know your comments on the issue.

Answer: Once again, we are witnessing the dissemination of unfounded and completely misleading information against Azerbaijan without being based on a certain fact or a reliable source. We consider this as a slanderous and ugly campaign against our country.

There is no doubt that Armenia, which has recruited mercenaries and terrorists from the Middle East as part of its aggressive policy against Azerbaijan, is behind this fake campaign. Having Monte Melkonian declared a national hero of Armenia, one of the leaders of the ASALA terrorist organization and a direct participant in the occupation of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, who was of American origin and acted for a long time as a member of a terrorist organization in Lebanon, and even the inclusion of the "heroism" of this fierce terrorist in the textbooks of secondary schools in Armenia is quite well known to all.

Armenia, which is currently facing a mobilization problem and planning to recruit armed groups on a voluntary basis, including foreign mercenaries, is trying to divert the attention of the international community from its nefarious plans by spreading such false information against Azerbaijan.

We emphasize that Azerbaijan has a strong and professional army, and our country does not need any outside forces to give a decent response to enemy forces, as well as to restore its territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders.