On 1 October, AFP interviewed Hikmet Hajiyev, aide to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.

"We cannot accept the accusations of ethnic cleansing or genocide," said Hajiyev. "Ethnic cleansing is a forceful action, when someone uses force against civilians, which is exactly what Armenia used against us 30 years ago. But it doesn't mean that we will repeat it. There has not been a single case of violence or atrocities against civilians. They themselves testify to this," Hajiyev claimed.

"And there were no 'Armenian' citizens in Karabakh. We have always considered them as citizens of Azerbaijan, but unfortunately an illegal separatist entity didn't allow us to have direct communication with them," he said.

Hajiyev added that talks with ethnic Armenians have been productive and focused on disarming their military. The official stressed that Azerbaijan has arrested five to six people it accuses of war crimes. "We know there were concerns in Armenia and in the international media that we would arrest all the military. They are free. If someone puts down his weapon, he is free and he has decided of his own free will to go to the Republic of Armenia," the Azerbaijani official said. "As for the civilians, we have opened the gate and respected their freedom of movement, freedom of choice," the Azerbaijani presidential aide said.

"The majority of them say: 'I can't live under the flag of Azerbaijan'. I can't justify it, but I can understand and respect it. If they accept Azerbaijani citizenship, we will protect and ensure their rights and security, and we will establish a municipal system so that they can manage their affairs at the local level, and religious and cultural rights will be guaranteed," he continued.