Azernews.Az

By Rashid Shirinov

Argentinean journalist Ricardo Marquina Montanana was withdrawn from the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry’s list of people declared personae non gratae.

Montanana wrote a letter to the Embassy of Azerbaijan in Argentina, in which he expressed respect for Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity, sovereignty and inviolability of its internationally recognized borders, the Foreign Ministry reported on May 8.

The journalist also stated that he visited the occupied territories as he was uninformed about the illegality of such a visit, the statement reads.

In his letter, Montanana apologized to the people of Azerbaijan and noted that his visit did not mean to promote the illegal regime created in the occupied Azerbaijani territories.

The journalist’s appeal was reviewed and it was decided to exclude him from the Foreign Ministry’s ‘black list’.

Unauthorized visits to Nagorno-Karabakh and other regions of Azerbaijan occupied by Armenia are considered illegal, and any individuals paying such visits are included in the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry's "black list".

Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry and diplomatic missions pay special attention to the illegal activity in the occupied areas of Azerbaijan. Baku has repeatedly warned foreign officials and diplomats of illegality of visits to its territories that are occupied by Armenia, calling them contradictory to international law. The work is constantly carried out to prevent such illegal actions.

Armenia broke out a lengthy war against Azerbaijan laying territorial claims on its South Caucasus neighbor. Since a war in the early 1990s, Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and over 1 million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities.

Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding districts.

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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov

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