“The views expressed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania, Gabrielius Landsbergis, against Azerbaijan during the meeting of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) on October 2 are completely unfounded and unacceptable.”
Oku.Az As reported by the press secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan, Aykhan Hajizade, commenting on the opinions expressed by G. Landsbergis against Azerbaijan in the PACE:
“It has been reported that we would like to remind the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, who noted the stagnation of cooperation between Azerbaijan and the Council of Europe and called for a dialogue with the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe to resolve outstanding issues. It was Azerbaijan that interrupted the dialogue and rejected it, but the Azerbaijani delegation in PACE. It was 76 parliamentarians who supported the unfair and legally questionable initiative. After the violation of the Charter of the Council of Europe, the Azerbaijani side has demonstrated its will. openness to dialogue through various channels and to the solution of the situation, which is why the Lithuanian side, which chairs the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, is not at all concerned that Azerbaijan’s rights in PACE will be taken away.
The harmful approaches within PACE against Azerbaijan in recent years, especially after the liberation of our territories from Armenian occupation, are an attempt to overshadow our country’s position based on international law and justice. Representation in PACE is a right of Azerbaijan and it is necessary to guarantee this right without reservation.
Regarding the opinions on the ban on the entry of deputies of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe to Azerbaijan due to their vote on the issue of the powers of the Azerbaijan delegation, it should be noted that this decision was made within the framework of our sovereign right based on the legislation of the Republic of Azerbaijan, and this measure is in line with the existing laws of many countries, including member states of the Council of Europe, according to their experience. We have no intention or obligation to see parliamentarians who do not want to see representatives of Azerbaijan in PACE.
We strongly condemn Minister Landsbergis’s unfounded views on human rights in Azerbaijan. All fundamental rights and freedoms are fully respected in Azerbaijan in accordance with national legislation and the European Convention on Human Rights. It is completely incorrect to label investigations as “freedom-limiting sanctions.” of expression”.
Referring to the fact that the rights of Armenians who voluntarily moved to Armenia from the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan are protected within the framework of the European Convention on Human Rights and that it is important to respect their right to return, the Lithuanian minister did not talk about the rights of more than 300,000 Azerbaijanis who were expelled from the territory of Armenia for some reason.
Instead of taking such a biased position, it would be better for the Lithuanian minister to focus on his own activities and ask PACE to take necessary measures to restore dialogue and cooperation with Azerbaijan.
