Azernews.Az

BAKU – Azerbaijani lawmakers have criticized US and European Union countries’ envoys over their closed-door meeting with the hard-line opposition’s leaders.

The meeting of about 20 ambassadors with the leaders of the parties included in the Public Chamber umbrella opposition group, held at the Musavat party’s office on April 8, followed an antigovernment rally in Baku that was dispersed by the police. The gist of discussions was not elaborated to the media, and the opposition leaders only said they had discussed the political and social situation in Azerbaijan and planned protests.

Opposition-leaning MP Faraj Guliyev, addressing a parliamentary sitting on Friday, criticized the European diplomats’ closed-door meeting, saying that "if its participants were sincere, they would not have concealed the topics discussed from the public".

"Azerbaijani society has ample grounds for suspicion here, because the foreign diplomats did not invite any pro-opposition parliament members to that meeting," Guliyev commented.

The lawmaker suggested establishing a parliamentary commission to scrutinize the work of the diplomats based in Azerbaijan. "If necessary, some diplomats who participated at the meeting could be declared persona-non-grata," he added.

MP Fazayil Ibrahimli of the opposition Civil Solidarity Party accused the ambassadors of abusing power.

"Foreign embassies cannot judge who represents the government and who is the opposition in Azerbaijan," he said. "This is up to the Azerbaijani people."

Fazil Mustafa, the leader of opposition-leaning Great Establishment Party, said that, in fact, "there was nothing reprehensible" about the diplomats’ meeting, but its conduct behind closed doors and the arguments cited by the ambassadors are grounds for concern. He said it was evident that the envoys were trying "to conceal the essence of the meeting".

"Let them just say it upfront that they support the radicals seeking a revolution in Azerbaijan," Mustafa said.

Gudrat Hasanguliyev, chairman of the pro-opposition United Azerbaijan Popular Front Party, blamed the United States for supporting the Azerbaijani opposition. He said it is common knowledge that the European countries are under US influence, charging that "the US ambassador to Azerbaijan tried to hide the trace by sending his deputy to the meeting".

Hasanguliyev claimed that the cause of these actions was President Ilham Aliyev’s earlier turning down his US counterpart Barack Obama’s invitation to the talks held in Istanbul.

"The [Azerbaijani] president was absolutely right to make that decision, because in Istanbul, the US president, together with the Turkish leader, would have demanded his consent to the reopening of the Turkey-Armenia border and the holding of a referendum to determine the status of Nagorno Karabakh [an Azerbaijani region occupied by Armenia]," Hasanguliyev added.

Chairman of opposition Umid (Hope) Party, Igbal Agazada, disagreed with the other lawmakers’ statements.

"I am concerned with…the tension being deliberately caused with the diplomatic community," Agazada said. "This was just a meeting. Representatives of the diplomatic corps are holding meetings with the ruling party as well. Taking such steps against the diplomatic missions runs counter to the interests of the government and Azerbaijan’s statehood."

US Ambassador in Baku Matthew Bryza said earlier that the United States does not interfere with Azerbaijan’s internal affairs, and the country "is a friendly nation and a partner" for the U.S. Bryza said he did not attend in person the meeting with Ali Karimli of Azerbaijan Popular Front Party and Isa Gambar of Musavat. But he said "there is nothing unusual or wrong" with a meeting of any US embassy employee with opposition representatives and that such meetings are "a step toward democratic progress".