President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan congratulated Azerbaijan on Victory Day on Tuesday, marking the second anniversary of Azerbaijan's victory in Karabakh against Armenia.
"I sincerely congratulate Azerbaijan on its Victory Day, which marks the liberation of Karabakh after an epic struggle for 44 days," Erdoğan said on Twitter.
Karabakh belongs to Azerbaijan and will always remain part of the Southern Caucasus country, he also said.
Türkiye was a key backer of Azerbaijan during the 44-day Karabakh War between Azerbaijan and Armenia that erupted on Sept. 27, 2020, and ended with a Russian-brokered cease-fire on Nov. 10.
Azerbaijan celebrated Victory Day on Nov. 8, marking the liberation of Shusha city on the same day in 2020. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on Tuesday attended an event in Shusha city.
"President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Victorious Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Ilham Aliyev, First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva and their son Heydar Aliyev have attended an event organized on the occasion of the Victory Day in Shusha. The head of state made a speech in front of the servicemen," read a statement from the Azerbaijani Presidency.
Separately, the Azerbaijani first lady shared a post on her official Instagram page on the occasion of Victory Day.
"Happy Victory Day! May Allah rest the souls of all our martyrs, who died for the Motherland, in peace. May Allah the Almighty always protect our native Azerbaijan," Aliyeva said.
Relations between the former Soviet republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan have been tense since 1991 when the Armenian military illegally occupied Karabakh, a territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, and seven adjacent regions.
Clashes erupted on Sept. 27, 2020, with the Armenian Army attacking civilians and Azerbaijani forces, violating several humanitarian cease-fire agreements.
During the 44-day conflict, Azerbaijan liberated several cities and around 300 settlements and villages that had been occupied by Armenia for almost 30 years.
The fighting ended with a Russian-brokered agreement on Nov. 10, 2020, which was seen as a victory for Azerbaijan and a defeat for Armenia.
However, the cease-fire has been broken several times since then.
After the conflict ended, Azerbaijan launched a massive reconstruction initiative in the liberated Karabakh region.
