Western Azerbaijan Community

The Western Azerbaijan Community has sharply condemned the provocative statement by the Armenian chess player Levon Aronian, who is currently representing the United States.

The community noted that Levon Aronian, who uses fictional toponyms such as "Artsakh", "Stepanakert", has learned to play chess, but has not learned to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of countries.

"Levon Aronian has never condemned Armenia's occupation of Azerbaijani lands, ethnic cleansing of Azerbaijanis in the territory of Armenia and the territories that were occupied at the time, deliberate destruction, looting and insulting of cities, villages, mosques, on the contrary, he joined his racist, Dashnak-minded compatriots like himself and was proud.

Levon Aronian, did not ask the former president of Armenia, Serzh Sargsyan, who came to the occupied territories to fight during the Patriotic War and later fled to Armenia in shame, why he participated in the organization and perpetration of the genocide of the civilian Azerbaijani population in Khojaly, when he was the president of the Armenian Chess Federation. If Levon Aronian has a little sense of conscience, it is not too late, he may condemn this act of the executioner of Khojaly.

Levon Aronian, by "shedding crocodile tears", "explained" his decision not to participate in the Chess World Cup held in Baku this August, saying he does not feel safe. However, Levon Aronian took part in the tournament held in Baku in 2015 - the World Cup itself - while the Azerbaijani lands were under occupation, and even willingly took pictures. Apparently, the victory of Azerbaijan in the Patriotic War disappointed Levon Aronian.

Levon Aronian should avoid poor shows and focus on playing chess. If Levon Aronian is really concerned about human suffering, then he should call the Armenian government to dialogue with the Western Azerbaijan Community regarding the return of the deported Azerbaijanis to their ancestral lands."