The Turkish President recalled the execution of Azerbaijanis by the Soviet authorities
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan stated that during the 44-day war in Karabakh, an information campaign was launched against Azerbaijan with the aim of accusing Ankara of supporting Baku. He emphasized that these accusations relied on the rhetoric of Ankara's opponents and spread false information about Turkish arms supplies to Azerbaijan.
Erdoğan compared this situation to the tragedy on the Boraltan Bridge, when Turkey extradited a group of Azerbaijanis to the Soviet authorities, knowing their fate. He called for solidarity and consolidation among Turkic peoples to overcome historical challenges.
In 1944, 146 Azerbaijanis, fleeing Soviet rule, fled to Turkey and took refuge in a military unit in Iğdır Province, crossing the Boraltan Bridge on the Araz River. The Soviet government demanded their immediate extradition. On orders from Ankara, the commander of the Turkish military unit handed the refugees over to Soviet border guards. Immediately after crossing the border, the Azerbaijanis were shot.
