Azerbaijan hosts Victory Fair to celebrate Karabakh success

BAKU, Azerbaijan

A special fair opened in Azerbaijan’s capital Baku on Wednesday to celebrate the country’s success against Armenia in last year’s Karabakh conflict.

A range of food items, books and souvenirs are on offer at the Victory Fair, which will run in Baku’s National Park, on the shores of the Caspian Sea, until Nov. 9.

Armored vehicles, weapons and equipment used by the Azerbaijani army in the Karabakh conflict are also being exhibited at the fair.

Fun competitions and activities for children, as well as special shows put on by traditional wrestlers, are a major attraction at the fair.

Revenue generated from the event will go to the YASAT Fund set up by President Ilham Aliyev to support families of soldiers wounded or killed in the Karabakh war.

Liberation of Karabakh

Relations between the former Soviet republics have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, also known as Upper Karabakh, a territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, and seven adjacent regions.

New clashes erupted on Sept. 27 last year, with the Armenian army attacking civilians and Azerbaijani forces and violating several humanitarian cease-fire agreements.

During the 44-day conflict, Azerbaijan liberated several cities and some 300 settlements and villages that were occupied by Armenia for almost 30 years.

Prior to this, about 20% of Azerbaijan’s territory was under illegal occupation.

The fighting ended with a Russian-brokered agreement on Nov. 10, 2020 with the cease-fire seen as a victory for Azerbaijan and a defeat for Armenia.

Two months later, the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a pact to develop economic ties and infrastructure to benefit the entire region. It also included the establishment of a trilateral working group on Karabakh.

*Writing by Jeyhun Aliyev in Ankara