Azerbaijani parliament strongly condemns French Senate resolution

27 November 2020 11:00 (UTC+04:00)

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By Vafa Ismayilova

The Azerbaijani parliament has strongly condemned the adoption by the French Senate of a draft resolution on the recognition of the self-styled entity in Nagorno-Karabakh.

In a statement adopted on November 26, the parliament stressed that the existence of the self-proclaimed republic in Karabakh ended in November 2020.

“An end was put to the existence of the ‘Nagorno-Karabakh Republic’ on November 2020, illegally created on the Azerbaijani territories occupied by the Armenian armed forces in 1988-1994 and not recognized by any country,” the statement said.

Crushing blow for Europe

The parliament said that the document adopted by the French Senate might be a crushing blow to the EU and its Eastern Partnership programme.

“This step of the French Senate does not fit into the commitments undertaken by France within the global strategy on the EU foreign and security policy, including documents on the territorial integrity of countries consistently adopted since 2016 by the EU Council. The implementation of the provisions of this resolution has the potential to make a crushing blow to the EU and its Eastern Partnership programme," the statement said.

Lack of differentiation between Azerbaijan, Armenia

The parliament said that one of the main reasons for the failure to resolve the conflict was the lack of differentiation between the aggressor state and occupied state.

“One of the main reasons for the unresolvedness of the almost 30-year-old Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which is a threat to the security of the South Caucasus and the whole of Europe, is that the states that played the role of international mediator in peace negotiations, in particular France, didn’t call the aggressor their name, didn’t differentiate between the occupier and the occupied, “ the statement said.

It reiterated that Azerbaijan in line with its right to self-defence forced the occupying forces to peace.

“With the support of external forces interested in the continuation of instability in the South Caucasus region, wishing to permanently disrupt peace negotiations and legitimize the occupation of Azerbaijani lands, Armenia on September 27, 2020, resorted to another provocation against Azerbaijan. However, the 44-day counter-offensive operation of Azerbaijan, which used the right to self-defence in accordance with paragraph 51 of the UN Charter, forced the occupying Armenia to peace,” the statement stressed.

Unfounded allegations

It dismissed the allegations about Turkish armed forces' participation in the 44-day counteroffensive operations as unfounded.

“In the resolution of the French Senate there is no evidence that the Turkish armed forces participated in the counter-offensive operation by Azerbaijan and that mercenaries from some conflictive regions of the Middle East were used against Armenia, unfounded and falsified allegations were made about the commission of war crimes against civilians in Nagorno-Karabakh, however, no facts are given for these statements," the statement added.

The parliament noted irrefutable facts about the participation of terrorist groups from foreign countries in the war on the Armenian side.

“On the other hand, there are irrefutable facts that chauvinist, racist and terrorist groups of mercenaries from foreign countries, including France, were used against Azerbaijan, which were brought into the war zone by Armenia, committing grave war crimes against civilians, and civilian facilities in the settlements located far from the war zone,” the statement said.

Khojaly genocide

The parliament spoke about the Khojaly genocide, which France has been silent about over the past 30 years.

“During the aggressive war against Azerbaijan in 1992-1994, the Armenian armed forces committed a number of massacre acts against peaceful Azerbaijanis, including one of the terrible tragedies of the 20th century - the Khojaly genocide. Considering itself an ‘example’ for respect to human rights and democratic values, France chose to remain silent in face of these crimes against peaceful Azerbaijanis. During the colonial policy, the French armed forces massacred hundreds of thousands of civilians for ethnic and religious affiliation. The crimes of genocide committed are an indelible dark mark in the political history of France,” the statement said.

Karabakh peace deal

The parliament stressed in its statement that the trilateral document signed by the presidents of Azerbaijan, Russia, and the prime minister of Armenia on November 10, 2020, put an end to the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which lasted for more than 30 years, the occupation of Azerbaijani lands, and opened the way for the further development of the South Caucasus region.

The statement noted that the trilateral statement restored the superiority of the norms and principles of international law, ensuring the implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions 822, 853, 874 and 884, adopted in 1993, which were also supported by France, UN General Assembly resolution 62/243, adopted in 2008, as well as documents adopted in certain years by the EU and the European Parliament, PACE, OIC, Non-Aligned Movement, ECHR, and other international structures.

The parliament emphasized that all international organizations and states, including France, must accept new realities, formed thanks to the comprehensive efforts of Azerbaijan in the South Caucasus region. It added that these realities are supported by Russia and Turkey, which have authority in the region, reminds that they are also accepted by Armenia.

Taking in view the above-mentioned, the parliament also turned to the Azerbaijani government urging it to appeal to the OSCE leadership to withdraw France from the co-chairmanship of the OSCE Minsk Group, which, by its position and appeals displayed over the past days, casts doubt on its independence. The parliament asked the government to reconsider the Azerbaijani-French political relations, to deeply analyze the Azerbaijani-French economic relations and take the necessary measures.