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Today, on May 9 - the 70th anniversary of the victory over the fascist Germany - no festive celebrations are held in Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow for the Victory Day parade. It is not known whether he held the traditional observance of placing flowers at the monument of the double hero of the Soviet Union, General Azi Aslanov, as a tribute to all those killed during World War II. There is no official information available about that, Turan information agency writes.

Turan notes that the Azerbaijanis fought on the German side as well. During the war, the political refugees formed Azerbaijan National Committee which was to lead the country after the Germans seized the Caucasus. In 1941 the Caucasian Muslim Legion was created which was renamed into Aserbaidschanische Legion in 1942.

Five battalions of 4,500 Azerbaijani soldiers fought on the Caucasus front. In the summer of 1943, the 162nd Turkish infantry division was formed within the Azerbaijani regiment and the separate construction battalion. In 1944, the Azerbaijani Legion was reorganized as Joint Staff of the Azerbaijan Liberation Army. In total, 38,000 Azerbaijani soldiers and officers fought on the side of the Germans.