An old saying goes: even if you enjoy life in beautiful places, your homeland is irreplaceable. Past and current wars and conflicts have unfortunately caused and are still causing thousands to be driven from their homeland, their lives and dreams are disrupted; the trauma of such a collapse still haunts them. And their longing for their homeland seems unshakable.
The 30-year war between Armenia and Azerbaijan led to the displacement of over one million ethnic Azerbaijanis, including more than 300,000 from Armenia and over 700,000 from the former occupied Karabakh and seven neighboring regions of Azerbaijan. The houses and public facilities that were previously theirs have been completely looted and destroyed. These refugees and internally displaced persons had to live in tent camps and abandoned railway cars for many years in harsh climatic conditions: freezing cold and scorching sun. Thanks to its economic development, the Azerbaijani government can improve their living conditions.
Since the war between Armenia and Azerbaijan ended in 2020, refugees and internally displaced persons have been demanding that the Azerbaijani government return them to their native places. However, this is far from easy, since as a result of the war, not only have all houses and residential facilities been completely destroyed by the occupiers, but the territory captured during the conflict has also been “sown” with nearly 1.5 million anti-personnel mines, where demining measures require enormous financial and technical assistance. Over the past 4 years, only 56 thousand anti-personnel mines have been defused. The level of international support in this regard is quite low.
The subsequent settlement (return) of internally displaced persons to their native places is relatively more realistic, given the fact that Azerbaijan has restored sovereignty over the previously occupied territories. However, much more international attention is needed to implement the return of ethnic Azerbaijani refugees from Armenia to their homes. After the end of the war, the representative organization of Azerbaijani refugees - the West Azerbaijan Community - appealed to the government of Armenia with a request to return the people to their native places in Armenia as citizens of the Republic of Armenia. The Armenian government has not responded to their appeal, despite the fact that Azerbaijan has officially declared its readiness to accept ethnic Armenians who have voluntarily left the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan if they are ready to accept Azerbaijani citizenship.
The implementation of the repatriation of ethnic Azerbaijanis to their homelands is an important factor for peace and stability, as well as for good-will cooperation and coexistence in the region. Their return will not only be a testament to the victory of justice, but will also be crucial for establishing channels of communication between Armenians and Azerbaijanis - living together in Armenia and Azerbaijan, which in turn will contribute to their social contact and cultural interaction: in the name of peace and cooperation.