Artsakh Republic President Bako Sahakyan has issued an address in connection with the anniversary of the Four Day April War.
The address runs as follows:
“Dear compatriots,
A year ago on the night of April the 1st Azerbaijan undertook the large-scale military operation along the whole perimeter of the Karabakh-Azerbaijani border.
The official Baku again tried to solve the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict by force, destroy the independent Artsakh statehood, and commit a new genocide of the Armenian people.
The enemy’s aggression completely failed and it suffered considerable human, material and moral losses unable to realize any of its treacherous programs.
The adversary faced our armed forces, our valiant soldiers, our population that had consolidated into an army, the entire Armenian people, the Mother Armenia and the Diaspora, who immediately stood next to Artsakh. The Armenian people have proved once again that free and independent homeland is the highest value for us and that we are capable of defending our state from any encroachments.
Unfortunately, in the result of the insidious and provocative actions of the adversary we had irretrievable losses. Dozens of servicemen and civilians perished.
Eternal honor and glory to all our martyrs! Their bright memory will always remain in our hearts, their bravery and heroism will become a guideline for the future generations.
Defeated in the battlefield, Azerbaijan has not abandoned its expansionist programs. It continues to conduct anti-Armenian policy, does not refrain from implementing offensive operations in political, information and diplomatic spheres, and keeps violating the ceasefire regime in different sectors of the borders almost on a daily basis. The authorities of Azerbaijan does not hide that it is pursuing a revanchist policy. Such a stance is nothing else than a terrorism, another heinous and inhuman manifestation of genocidal policy.
All these once again confirm a century-long truth for our people: we must always be strong and united, protect our freedom and independence and build a worthy future for the generations to come.
Dear people,
Our spirit is firm, our will is unshakable, our purposes are just. We defend our native land, our homes and families, develop our country by painstaking work. This is a sacred mission that our people will always carry out with dignity”.