Azerbaijan respectfully declines to withdraw troops from the border. Azerbaijan wishes to state their reasons for this refusal so as to be perfectly clear. The Azeri Army has built extensive defensive fortifications along the border using the natural advantages of the terrain, and should we pull back our troops, this sole defensive line into our nation will be unoccupied. Should an enemy attack and occupy these fortifications before our troops can man them, our country will be completely defenseless and largely at the mercy of the enemy.
Further, many small villages exist within this distance of the border, and both sides face the challenge of not only patrolling against enemy attack, but keeping non-military irregular units contained. To date this has been accomplished, but the departure of border guard forces of both sides will be dangerous to the internal security of both Azerbaijan and Persia, and presents more opportunities for an invader to challenge our actions. We do not feel foreign peace-keeping troops have the necessary knowledge of the land nor the good relationships with the local village leaders which is so necessary to maintain a peaceful status quo; and for these reasons we likewise don't want foreign peacekeepers on the Persian side of the border, either! It is a harsh reality that both sides are well served by the comparative proximity of troops close to the border, even though this threatens dangerous clashes when the two mix.
Further, Azerbaijan does not see any "disputed area" unless the Persians wish to dispute the existence of Azerbaijan: in which case Azerbaijan cannot realistically pull back its troops from said disputed area. Azerbaijan's analysis of Persian actions seems to indicate Persian soldiers expect their Azeri counterparts to accept their orders and jump to their bidding; such an attitude would seem to be in line with the thought, occasionally advanced in Persian circles, that the Azeri nation is a rightful domain of the Persian Empire. So far as all living men and women remember, Azerbaijan has not been a political flunky of the Shah.
Azerbaijan would like to propose an alternate plan which we hope will be amenable to both sides. Currently the forces on the border are heavily reinforced from peacetime levels. A retreat of these units, made in stages and overseen by foreign observation committees, should begin at once, with forces being sent home as confidence in the opposition grows, stopping when forces reach peacetime levels.
Next, Azerbaijan wishes to address the Caspian Sea situation which led to the initiation of this crisis. Azerbaijan would like to propose that the Caspian Sea have a 12-mile territorial limit, with the remaining area being divided into the existing Exclusive Economic Zones for fishing and mineral extraction; for freighting vessels the Caspian will be equally open. Warships of the three affected powers (Russia, Azerbaijan, and Persia) will exercise all rights within their territorial waters, and the standard limited rights to inspect fishing vessels in their EEZ to prevent "poaching".
The Azeri government, having just finished its trial on the so-called Battle of Astara, will advance the following statement on its nature. After extensive eyewitness testimony it was agreed that the Persian gunship fired first, but not directly at the Azeri fleet - apparently intending it as warning shots. In the tension of the situation the Azeri gunners "returned fire" at the Persian vessels in the perception of self-defense.