Baku to announce several Bulgarian MPs 'Non Grata'
By Gunay Camal
Several Bulgarian MPs can be announced a persona non-grata by Baku over an illegal visit of the MPs to Azerbaijan’s territories occupied by Armenia.
Hikmat Hajiyev, spokesman for Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry told Trend on May 26 that a group of MPs of Bulgaria's Patriotic Front Party illegally visited the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.
“This visit, which wasn't coordinated with anyone, is considered by Azerbaijan as an attempt to promote the fictitious regime created in the wake of the military aggression, occupation, and bloody ethnic cleansing in the Armenian-occupied Azerbaijani territories,” he said.
Armenia captured Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions of Azerbaijan in a war that followed the Soviet breakup in 1991. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and nearly one million were displaced as a result of the war. Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions are temporarily out of the control of Azerbaijan as a result of Armenia’s aggression.
Hajiyev believes that this illegal visit shows that some people in Bulgaria are seriously bothered by the country's friendly and strategic partner relations with Azerbaijan.
"Unfortunately, Yerevan is busy committing such unnecessary and meaningless provocative acts instead of preparing the basis for the comprehensive and substantial talks mentioned at the Vienna [presidential] meeting," said Hajiyev.
Hajiyev further said that the Azerbaijani embassy in Bulgaria will appeal to this country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as the National Assembly (Parliament) and convey Azerbaijan's concern over this illegal and provocative visit
“After the necessary specification, their names [of Bulgarian MPs] will be added to the Foreign Ministry’s list of undesirable persons,” Hajiyev said.
Baku has repeatedly announced that it will not tolerate the violation of its sovereignty and territorial integrity, including in particular through engaging in and/or facilitating by whatever ways and means illegal activities in the occupied territories.
Under the Azerbaijani legislation, any illegal activity in the occupied lands of Azerbaijan can be cause for a prosecution. Unauthorized visits to Nagorno-Karabakh and other occupied regions of Azerbaijan are considered illegal and individuals who pay such visits are included in the ministry’s “black list”.
The list of persona non grata banned from visiting Azerbaijan includes MPs, businessmen, journalists, entertainers, and others, who violated Azerbaijan’s borders and showed disrespect to the sovereignty and territorial unity of the country.
--
Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz