U.S. Pledges Continued Focus On Political Prisoners In Azerbaijan
U.S. Pledges Continued Focus On Political Prisoners In Azerbaijan
The United States said on Monday it will 'continue to be focused on' the issue of political prisoners during high-level engagements with Azerbaijan, TURAN's Washington correspondent report.
"This is a long process and it requires us to have continued engagement," State Department's principal deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel told a daily briefing when asked by TURAN about recent high-level engagements with Baku which happened to happen without securing political prisoners in the country.
"It’s something that I would expect both the Secretary [of State] and Assistant Secretary [Jim] O’Brien and others to continue to be focused on," Patel went on to add.
In his latest phone call with President Ilham Aliyev, Blinken urged Azerbaijan to adhere to its international human rights obligations and commitments and release all those unjustly detained. "He called on Azerbaijan to do so expeditiously," the State Department said in the readout of the June 20 call.
Assistant Secretary O’Brien, who last week visited Azerbaijan, also told Congress that he would talk to Aliyev about the importance of respecting human rights. "That's a regular topic of conversation... and I look forward to taking up that conversation with him as well," he said.
Azerbaijan’s government has been accused of increasing its crackdown on media and civil society activism lately. Human rights organizations have documented at least 25 instances of the arrest or sentencing of journalists and activists since last fall, almost all of whom remain in custody.
Politics
-
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Moldova has decided to unilaterally terminate the Moldovan-Russian agreement from 1998 on the creation and operation of cultural centers.
-
By the order of the head of state, Rufat Mahmud has been appointed the new head of the historical and architectural reserve "Icheri Sheher" – the historic center of Baku.
-
On February 13, the Appeal Court did not satisfy the defense's appeal against the decision of the Khatai Court regarding the arrest of journalist Shahnaz Beylargizi. According to the lawyer, the journalist herself did not participate in the trial due to poor health. The defense intends to submit a petition to replace the arrest with house arrest.
-
Azerbaijan will limit 'Sputnik Azerbaijan' and 'BBC News Azərbaycanca' editorial offices. This was reported by the country's pro-government media on 13 February, citing an informed source.
Leave a review