Azerbaijan marks State Sovereignty Day on September 20.
As reported by İdman.Biz, President Ilham Aliyev signed an order establishing the commemorative day on September 19, 2024. Under the document, September 20 is celebrated annually as State Sovereignty Day of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
The date is linked to the events of September 2023, when Azerbaijan launched a local anti-terrorist operation in the Karabakh economic region on September 19. According to the presidential order, the operation was aimed at disarming and removing the remaining Armenian armed formations and restoring Azerbaijan's constitutional order in the territories. It ended on September 20, with the Azerbaijani authorities declaring the country's sovereignty fully restored.
The order also refers to the 44-day Patriotic War, which began on September 27, 2020. As a result of the war, Azerbaijan regained control over territories that had been under Armenian occupation for nearly three decades and restored its territorial integrity.
The September 2023 operation lasted less than a day. Following its completion, Azerbaijani state institutions established control over the remaining areas of Karabakh, marking what the presidential order describes as the full restoration of the country's state sovereignty.
September 20 is officially designated as a holiday in Azerbaijan but remains a working day.
