Before the parade In early December, it was revealed that a
victory parade would be held on 10 December in
Azadliq Square,
Baku, capital of
Azerbaijan. Traffic was restricted on some streets and avenues to ensure the safety of military parade-related equipment. On 5 December, the
Azerbaijani Armed Forces started training exercises for the parade. On December 8, a training exercise was held at the military parade, during which the military booty seized by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces from
Armenia was demonstrated. Also, training flights of
Azerbaijani Air Force planes and helicopters were carried out over Baku. On 9 December,
President of Turkey,
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan arrived by plane at the
Heydar Aliyev International Airport in
Baku. Erdoğan was greeted by Azerbaijani officials and Turkish diplomats in Baku. He was accompanied by his wife
Emine Erdoğan, foreign minister
Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, defence minister
Hulusi Akar, spokesman of the ruling
Justice and Development Party Ömer Çelik, the party's deputy chairman
Mahir Ünal, spokesman of the presidential administration
İbrahim Kalın and Turkish Presidential Administration Public Relations Director
Fahrettin Altun. On 10 December, Ilham Aliyev and Erdoğan visited the
Martyrs' Lane, and laid wreaths at the Eternal Torch monument. Then, they went to
Alley of Honor to honor the memory of former President of Azerbaijan,
Heydar Aliyev, and laid wreaths at his grave. Both Aliyev and Erdoğan prayed in the
Mosque of the Martyrs.
Pre-parade speech ,
Ilham Aliyev, and
President of Turkey,
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan during the parade. The parade began with the massed bands playing both
Azərbaycan marşı and
İstiklal Marşı after the arrival of the two heads of state. During his speech,
President of Azerbaijan,
Ilham Aliyev, stated that hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijanis living in the present-day
Armenia were "expelled from their ancestral lands", adding that
Zangezur,
Goycha, and
Iravan were the "
historical lands of Azerbaijan", and that the Armenian leadership had
expelled hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijanis from Armenia, as well as Nagorno-Karabakh. Ilham Aliyev also noted that three days before the war began, at
UN General Assembly, he said that "Armenia was preparing for a new war and they must be stopped". He added that in 2020, Armenia launched three attacks against Azerbaijan, in
July, in August, and in September. And in response, he had "ordered the Azerbaijani soldiers to move forward." Aliyev then recalled the
Battle of Shusha, calling it a "historic event". At the end, Aliyev stated that the Azerbaijani army had defeated Armenia, and that the
Armenian Army was almost "non-existent and destroyed", adding that if the "Armenian fascism rises again, the result will be the same". The
President of Turkey,
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also made a speech. He first wished
God's mercy to the Azerbaijani soldiers who were killed or wounded during the war, then continued to praise the
Azerbaijani–Turkish relations. He then added that those who brought "nothing but massacres and tears to
Karabakh must now come to their senses", and that the Armenian politicians should take "bold steps towards peace and stability." Erdoğan, reciting a controversial
Soviet Azerbaijani poem, then stated that it was the day that the "souls of
Ahmad Javad,
Nuru Pasha,
Enver Pasha and
Mubariz Ibrahimov were enlightened". He also stressed that the "struggle in the political and military spheres will continue on different fronts."
Features Personnel , the
Banner of Victory, and the flags of the branches of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces, led by the Lieutenant General Karim Valiyev. The personnel of the
Azerbaijani Armed Forces marched on following the address in the grounds of
Azadliq Square under the
Victory Banner, which is a flag planted in Shusha when the Azerbaijan forces
seized the city's control. Following the
state flag and the Victory Banner, and a joint service color guard bearing the colours of the service branches of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces approached the square. At the head of the march in front of the colours was the parade commander, Lieutenant General
Karim Valiyev, who saluted to the authorities in the rostum. The battle colours of the military units of the Armed Forces that took part in the war, which on that day were carried by colour guards in combat dress uniforms, marched past front of the rostrum under the leadership of Major General
Zaur Mammadov. The military conductor of the parade massed bands was the Honored Artist of Azerbaijan, Lieutenant Colonel Rufat Akhundzadeh, the son of
Yusif Akhundzade, who is the incumbent Chief of the
Military Band Service of the Armed Forces. The official parade master of ceremonies was the Honored Artist of Azerbaijan, the President's personal pensioner, Colonel Abdullah Gurbani. The following was the order of the parade's ground column, following the parade commander and the national flag color guard: • Personnel of the
Special Forces of the Ministry of Defense, led by the Commander of the Special Forces, Lieutenant General
Hikmat Mirzayev • Personnel of the
Marines of the
Azerbaijani Navy, led by First Class Captain Zaur Guliyev • Personnel of the of the
Foreign Intelligence Service • Personnel of the
State Security Service, led by Major General Rovshan Mukhtarov • Personnel of the Special Forces of the
Nakhchivan Army, led by Colonel Said Isayev • Personnel of the
1st Army Corps, led by Colonel Taleh Mashadiyev • Personnel of the
2nd Army Corps, led by Colonel Nemat Museyibov • Personnel of the Missile and Artillery Troops, led by Colonel Ismikhan Mammadov • Personnel of the
2nd Commando Brigade, led by Captain Harun Ergin • Personnel of the
State Border Service, led by Major General Rasul Tagiyev • Personnel of the
Internal Troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, led by Major General Ingilab Muradov Veterans of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces who took part in the war also passed thorough the parade in military vehicles. Servicemen of the Special Forces of the Ministry of Defense at the Victory parade.jpg|Personnel of the
Special Forces of the Ministry of Defense. Servicemen of the "Yarasa" Special Forces at Victory Parade in Baku.jpg|Personnel of the of the
Foreign Intelligence Service of Azerbaijan. Servicemen of the State Security Service of Azerbaijan at the Victory parade.jpg|Personnel of the
State Border Service of Azerbaijan. Special Forces of the Nakhchivan Army led by Colonel Said Isayev at the Victory parade (cropped).jpg|Personnel of the
Special Forces of the Nakhchivan Army. 1st Army Corps at the Victory parade 2.jpg|Personnel of the 1st Army Corps. Servicemen of the Turkish Special Forces Command, led by the Captain Harun Ergin.jpg|Personnel of the
2nd Commando Brigade (Turkey) blue berets. Servicemen of the State Border Service of Azerbaijan at the Victory Parade 2020 in Baku 3.jpg|Personnel of the
State Border Service of Azerbaijan.
Military equipment About 150 vehicles, including special purpose vehicles, armored vehicles and weapons systems of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces drove past in the parade mobile column segment led by the column commander, Lieutenant General Nizam Osmanov.
Orbiter-1 km, Orbiter-2B, Orbiter-3B, Orbiter-4, Aerostar-BP,
Heron,
Bayraktar TB2, as well as
Hermes-450,
Hermes-900, Guzghun and
Harop unmanned aerial vehicles used by Azerbaijan during the war were also demonstrated in the parade. Azerbaijani fighter jets and helicopters flew above
Baku at the end of the parade.
Military trophies During the parade, some of the military trophies seized from Armenians during the war, including 53 anti-tank weapons, 4
BM-30 Smerch MLRS, 97
Grad MLRS, 2
BM-27 Uragan MLRS, 1
TOS-1 MLRS, 7
S-300 SAMs, 1 S-300 radar, 2 S-300 detection stations, 1
P-14 radar, 5
Tor SAMs, 40
9K33 Osa SAMs, 4
2K12 Kub SAMs, 1
2K11 Krug SAM, 14 Zastava SAM, 2
S-125 SAMs, 22 UAVs, 2
R-17 Elbrus systems, 1
OTR-21 Tochka missile system, 2 R-142s, 1 Sky-M, and 4 Repellent electronic warfare systems. In the meanwhile, some of the destroyed and captured Armenian vehicles were also showcased, including 33
2S3 Akatsiya and
2S1 Gvozdikas, 352 various cannons, 125 mortars, 103 special-purpose vehicles, 178 grenade launchers, 5
ZSU-23-4 Shilkas, 366 tanks, 116 IFVs, 5
Sukhoi Su-25s, and over 500 military trucks were also showcased. A plaque with the
license plates confiscated from the
Armenian Armed Forces was also displayed at the parade, with the panel having the inscription "Karabakh is Azerbaijan!". War trophies at 2020 Victory Parade in Baku (1).jpg|
ZSU-23-4 Shilka. War trophies at 2020 Victory Parade in Baku (2).jpg|
9K33 Osa. War trophies at 2020 Victory Parade in Baku (3).jpg|
2K12 Kub.
Crowd The military parade aroused great interest among
Baku residents, who gathered in different parts of the city and tried to watch the parade closely. Despite the
COVID-19 measures,
Baku residents tried to go to
Azadliq Square around
Nizami Street and Sahil Park to watch the military parade. However, they were stopped by the police and the police officers did not allow people to enter the
Baku Boulevard. Azerbaijani Defense Ministry officials said the city was not closed and people had gathered to watch the parade near the
Puppet Theater. The Baku Main Police Office further noted that "necessary measures are being taken to control the event and prevent the spread of the pandemic and to prevent overcrowding in the area." There was no official warning to the population on not gathering. A BBC Azerbaijani correspondent reported that Baku residents were flocking to Azadliq Square from Neftchilar Avenue despite the fact that the parade was going to start soon. Crowds of people, waving Azerbaijani and Turkish flags, watched the parade. == Aftermath ==