While addressing participants of the 53rd meeting of the Council of Heads of Security and Special Services of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) member states on October 10, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev said that Armenian supporters in the West had launched a dirty, provocative, and false campaign against Azerbaijan, accusing us of all sins.

"France plays a leading role in this, which is reflected in the statements of its officials and in attempts to discredit Azerbaijan through a massive media campaign, where everything is turned upside down. Azerbaijan is portrayed as the aggressor, Armenia as the victim. The history of the 30-year occupation, the destruction of all our cities and villages, the Khojaly genocide – all of this is naturally ignored, and completely false stories are fabricated. But, by the way, I must say that just yesterday, I was shown a video segment where a US presidential candidate makes accusations against Azerbaijan and shows footage of an Armenian rocket attack on the city of Ganja," he noted.

"To stoop to such a level of falsification and cynicism is unimaginable. During the Second Karabakh War, Armenia shelled our cities, located hundreds of kilometers away from the conflict zone, with long-range artillery, including ballistic missiles, and more than a hundred civilians, including children, were killed. So, this so-called candidate, while accusing Azerbaijan, displays footage of an Armenian attack on Ganja and Barda. How can you even talk to people like them? They don't want to hear anything. They have their own agendas handed down from the center and act accordingly. Therefore, we are currently facing an unprecedented information war against Azerbaijan. Of course, we are resisting with our own efforts, trying to convey the truth about what happened. But one must understand that the forces are unequal. Countries like France, with a long colonial history, have far more media resources around the world than we do," Aliyev added.

Speaking about France, he said, "I would also like to note the destructive and provocative role played by the leadership of this country throughout the period from 2020 and continuing to this day."

"Numerous accusations, baseless threats, and blackmail against Azerbaijan have had no effect. The recent statement by the President of France that Azerbaijan has problems with international law can only provoke laughter. Because Azerbaijan did not violate international law. We fought on our territory, we suppressed separatism, and we observed all humanitarian norms, all Geneva Conventions. Meanwhile, for 30 years, international law was violated by France's protege, and today, Armenia, its main ally, continues to occupy the territory of another state. As they say, one should remove the beam from one's eye before trying to remove the speck from someone else's eye. One and a half million Algerians were killed by the French regime just because they were Algerians and Muslims. This is a genocide. Not to mention France's bloody crimes in Africa, in other parts of Africa, and around the world. The fact that France still maintains colonies today is incomprehensible. As the chair of the Non-Aligned Movement, Azerbaijan has raised this issue repeatedly, and I personally raised it at the summits of the Non-Aligned Movement. This is a country with a bloody colonial past, from which, even today, some African countries are struggling to free themselves, accusing us of violating international law. This is absurd," the Azerbaijani leader said.

According to him, the Foreign Ministers of Russia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia were to meet in Bishkek on October 12 at the suggestion of the Russian side. "We appreciate the mediation of the Russian Federation because Russia is our neighbor and ally, as well as Armenia's ally, this country is in our region, unlike those thousands of kilometers away. The history of relations between our countries naturally presupposes Russia's mediation. We welcomed this proposal, and our Foreign Minister was ready to meet with his Russian and Armenian counterparts. Unfortunately, the Armenian side declined. Now, the question arises: does Armenia want peace? I think not because if it wanted peace, it would not have rejected this opportunity," Aliyev noted.

"Armenian Prime Minister flies 6 hours to Granada, attends some strange meeting where Azerbaijan is discussed in its absence, but he cannot fly 2-3 hours to Bishkek, he has important things to do. This is what we all have to say openly. Everyone can see it, but we should say it and proceed from it. In conclusion, I would like to say that as for the normalization of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia, we are ready to do it. We are ready to continue working on a peace treaty," the President concluded.