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Erdogan at 100th anniversary of liberation of Baku: Turkey will not open borders to Armenia

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Azerbaijan marked the 100th anniversary of the liberation of Baku by the Ottoman army yesterday on 15 September.

The Ottoman-Azerbaijani coalition fought against Bolshevik-Dashnak, British and White Russian forces to liberate the city in 1918. The day is considered to be an unofficial holiday in Azerbaijan, and also one that celebrates the friendship between Turkey and Azerbaijan.

Turkish President and guest of honour Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke at the parade and said that Turkey will continue to support Azerbaijan in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Erdogan also said that there will be no discussions pertaining to the opening of the Armenian-Turkish border.

Turkey closed its borders to Armenia in 1993 as a sign of solidarity with Azerbaijan in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

The cavalry of the State Border Service, the military orchestra and military equipment were displayed at the parade. Both Azerbaijani and Turkish military aircraft flew over the place.

Military equipment was paraded before both the Azerbaijan and Turkish presidents on Freedom Square and other officials.

Baku Boulevard was temporarily off-limits to the public, and thus Bakuvians watched the parade from a distance.

While the Russian monarchy was crumbling in 1917 and World War I continued in full force, Azerbaijan was not occupied by a single conqueror, and a battle between several forces raged in the country. The decisive battle took place on 15 September 1918, with Ottoman-Azerbaijani forces emerging victorious over a coalition of British, White Russian and Armenian forces from the Dashnkatsutyun.

 

This allowed the recently-created Azerbaijan Democratic Republic to gain control over the capital and to exist another 22 months before it was captured by the 11th Red Army of the Bolsheviks.

Social media users posted actively about the date, given that 1918 was so full of important and ambiguous events that there are still plenty of arguments and discussions to be had about who supported, and who was against, Azerbaijani independence.

Social media users were even more vocal about the closure of roads in downtown Baku and the resulting traffic jams.

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