Belarus offers Azerbaijan help in restoring Karabakh region

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Thursday offered assistance in the post-war reconstruction of the Karabakh region to his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev.

Speaking at a news conference in Baku, Lukashenko praised the return of Azerbaijani lands, saying it "will be remembered for centuries, for many epochs."

"If in this great cause of the revival of these lands, you find us a place where we can lend our shoulder and it will benefit you, we will do it with great pleasure.

"Moreover, we will do what no one else in the world will do… because of the mutual respect and friendship between the peoples of Belarus and Azerbaijan," he said.

Aliyev, for his part, described the scale of the work in Karabakh as enormous, adding he has invited Belarusian companies to join Azerbaijan's and other countries' efforts in this regard.

"We have to rebuild a significant area from scratch. ... Therefore, we invite Belarusian companies to join this work actively. Belarus has expertise in urban planning, modern technologies, and experience in constructing agricultural towns," he said.

Azerbaijan's primary tasks are not only providing housing and social infrastructure in the relevant territories but also creating modern, technological jobs for the people, Aliyev said, adding that Belarus can also help in this area by developing industrial cooperation, as well as trade and economic cooperation with Azerbaijan.

Since 1991, tensions have persisted between Baku and Yerevan when Armenian forces seized Karabakh and seven surrounding regions, recognized internationally as part of Azerbaijan.

In a 44-day conflict in late 2020, Azerbaijan reclaimed most of the territory, and last September attained full sovereignty over Karabakh through an "anti-terrorist operation," leading to the surrender of separatist forces in the region.