Azerbaijan Elevates 'Western Azerbaijan' Campaign to State Policy

Azerbaijan is advancing a campaign calling for the resettlement of Azerbaijanis in Armenian territory through state institutions and official policy, according to reporting from Yerevan. The third "Return to Western Azerbaijan" conference, held June 18-19 in Nakhichevan with support from Azerbaijan's Ministry of Science and Education and other state bodies, promoted the agenda as a human rights and displacement issue. Senior Azerbaijani officials, including parliamentary member Aziz Alakbarli and Science Minister Emin Amrullayev, framed the resettlement demand as consistent with international law and a strategic priority for Baku. The campaign, which includes a 2023 "Concept of Return," calls for international guarantees and monitoring mechanisms. Armenian officials have expressed concern that the issue could expand the scope of ongoing peace negotiations to include questions of Armenia's sovereignty and internal territory.