Erdoğan joins Aliyev in Karabakh for Azerbaijan's Victory Day
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan travelled to Azerbaijan on Sunday to attend Victory Day events in Karabakh alongside President Ilham Aliyev. The visit followed weeks of diplomatic disagreements between Ankara and Baku.
Azerbaijan marked Victory Day on Sunday, 8 November, the sixth anniversary of the end of the 2020 Karabakh war. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan attended the events in the Karabakh region at the invitation of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. The visit came after weeks of diplomatic disagreements between Ankara and Baku, along with criticism of Azerbaijan within Turkish society, and both leaders stressed the resilience of their partnership.
In Khankendi, Aliyev laid a wreath at the Victory Monument and paid tribute to the soldiers and officers who died in the 2020 war. He called the liberation of Shusha on 8 November 2020 the decisive moment of the conflict. Erdoğan and his wife, Emine, were welcomed in Karabakh by Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva.
At a joint press conference, Aliyev said the unity of the two countries would last forever and that together they were stronger. On X, Erdoğan described the victory as a source of pride for the entire Turkic world and said those seeking to weaken the Azerbaijan-Turkey brotherhood would never achieve their goals. Before the trip, he said relations with Azerbaijan went far beyond conventional diplomatic engagement.
Background
During the 44-day war between Azerbaijan and Armenia in 2020, Turkey gave Baku political and military support. Azerbaijan's retaking of Shusha on 8 November was a turning point, and a Russian-brokered ceasefire was signed two days later, on 10 November. The alliance was formalised on 15 June 2021 with the Shusha Declaration, which strengthened defence and security cooperation.
Reconstruction in Karabakh
Aliyev said 97,000 people now live, study and work in the territories Azerbaijan regained. Official figures show more than 40,000 residents have moved into newly built communities, including Fuzuli, Zangilan, Lachin and Shusha. State infrastructure spending has exceeded €10 billion since 2020, and international airports have been completed in Fuzuli, Zangilan and Lachin.
Erdoğan welcomed the reconstruction work and said Turkey would keep contributing its experience.
Peace process with Armenia
Baku and Yerevan now negotiate directly through government commissions. Earlier this year, a 12.7-kilometre northern border section was formally demarcated, and negotiators have finalised most articles of a draft peace treaty.
