Is the European Parliament's Resolution Objective?

Recently, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on the human rights situation in Azerbaijan with 453 votes in favor, 31 against, and 89 abstentions. The document, titled “On the Situation in Azerbaijan, Human Rights Violations, and International Law and Relations with Armenia,” notes that previous resolutions regarding the situation in Azerbaijan and “Nagorno-Karabakh” were considered in its drafting.

It was stated that the resolution took into account the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance’s report on Azerbaijan from March 29, 2023, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights memorandum from October 21, 2021, and the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh ceasefire statement signed between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

The Milli Majlis of Azerbaijan responded to the European Parliament's resolution, regarding it as a clear demonstration of anti-Azerbaijani policy within the European Parliament.

This issue was addressed in the program "Difficult Question," with commentary from human rights defender Fuad Hasanov. According to him, the European Parliament's stance did not form overnight, as evidenced by references to previous documents. He acknowledged that human rights and international law are indeed violated in Azerbaijan, noting that there are over 300 political prisoners.

The expert emphasized the current strained relations between Azerbaijan and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). He also pointed out that Azerbaijan’s ties with the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture have been disrupted, with contact completely severed since last summer. Furthermore, despite Azerbaijan’s commitments, PACE observers were not invited to the snap parliamentary elections held on September 1, 2024. The implementation of European Court decisions in Azerbaijan is at an extremely low level.

Regarding the accusations against Azerbaijan of "occupying Armenian sovereign territory," violating its "territorial integrity," and "forcibly displacing" Armenians from "Nagorno-Karabakh," the expert argued that these accusations are unfounded.