Montserrat Caballe is declared persona non-grata in Azerbaijan

A Spanish opera singer, Montserrat Caballe, is declared persona non grata in Azerbaijan, according to "Interfax" referring to the country's embassy in Spain. The decision was  adopted because  on  June 4 the singer visited Nagorno-Karabakh, the Azerbaijani territory occupied by Armenia.

"We sent a protest note to the Spanish side, explaining the whole situation, and demanded an explanation regarding her visit to  the occupied territories of Azerbaijan. The note stated that Caballe will not receive Azerbaijani visa, as she  becomes persona non-grata," according to the Azerbaijani embassy.

In addition, the embassy clarified that the singer's managers were informed of the prohibition to visit the occupied territories in advance - as soon as it became known  about the plans of the opera   diva  to visit the  Nagorno Karabakh.  The  representatives of  Caballe  assured that she will not give concerts in the  occupied territory.

However Caballe visited Nagorno-Karabakh on June 4,  after her visit to Yerevan. During the visit, the singer, in particular, met with the leadership of the unrecognized republic and its president, Bako Sahakyan, and visited local  sightseeing.—0—