Aliyev and Erdoğan pose by Shusha fortress walls on Victory Day

After making joint statements to the press, the presidents of Azerbaijan and Türkiye visited the 18th-century Shusha fortress and posed for photographs against its walls. Aliyev recalled that Shusha had been under occupation for 28 years but had not lost its national spirit.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and President of Türkiye Recep Tayyip Erdoğan visited Shusha fortress on November 8 and posed for photographs against its walls, the press service of the Azerbaijani president said. Anadolu reported that the leaders went to the fortress after one-on-one talks and joint statements to the press in Shusha.

In the published photographs, the presidents pose on the paved road leading to the fortress gates, above which the inscription “Şuşa” is displayed. In one image, Aliyev is seen laughing as he tells his guest something.

The fortress of Panah Ali Khan

Shusha fortress was built in the mid-18th century under Panah Ali Khan, the founder of the Karabakh Khanate, and Shusha remained the khanate’s capital for decades. Armenian forces occupied the city in 1992, and the Azerbaijani army liberated it on November 8, 2020. Since then, Azerbaijan has marked the date as Victory Day.

Presidents of Azerbaijan and Türkiye on the road to Shusha fortress

Speaking to journalists on the same day, Aliyev recalled: “Exactly six years ago, the city of Shusha was liberated from Armenian occupation, and a day later Armenia officially capitulated. Thus, the period of 30-year occupation came to an end.” He emphasized the city’s special significance. “The city of Shusha was under occupation for 28 years but did not lose its national spirit. The liberation of the city of Shusha had great symbolic significance and became one of the important stages of the Second Karabakh War,” he said.

The city of the allied declaration

Shusha holds a special place in relations between Türkiye and Azerbaijan: on June 15, 2021, Aliyev and Erdoğan signed the Shusha Declaration there, formally establishing the allied relations between the two countries. That same year, Aliyev declared Shusha the cultural capital of Azerbaijan, while in 2023 the International Organization of Turkic Culture, TÜRKSOY, designated the city the cultural capital of the Turkic world.

Aliyev and Erdoğan pose for photographers by Shusha fortress

Erdoğan, for his part, said he was sincerely pleased by the development he had witnessed on the way to Shusha. “I am confident that Shusha will be transformed even further by my next visit,” the Turkish president said.

After visiting the fortress, the presidents traveled to Khojaly, where they honored the victims of the 1992 tragedy, and then laid wreaths at the Victory Monument in Khankendi. In the evening, an official reception was held in Khankendi in honor of Erdoğan and Emine Erdoğan on behalf of Aliyev and his wife.

Photo: Press service of the President of Azerbaijan

Aliyev and Erdoğan pose by Shusha fortress walls on Victory Day