“In difficult times, we need forums for dialog. Closing political channels hinders mutual understanding and cedes influence to other actors in a geopolitically highly tense region and situation,” German MEP Oliver Schenk of the European People’s Party, quoted by Deutsche Welle, said.
According to European bureau Report, in the evening of May 21, at the end of the European Parliament’s plenary hearings in Strasbourg, Sergei Lagodinsky, head of the European Parliament’s delegation to Euronest, called on Baku to reconsider the decision to withdraw. He noted that the country remains an important part of the regional dialog within the Eastern Partnership and its participation is necessary for discussions on the Black Sea strategy, transport connectivity, energy, digital infrastructure and cooperation projects in the region.
At the same time, some deputies in their speeches openly said that the actions of the EU itself and the European Parliament were one of the reasons for the crisis in relations with Baku.
Background
Earlier Milli Majlis decided to suspend cooperation with the European Parliament and withdraw from the parliamentary forum of Eastern European partnership Euronest. The Parliament’s participation in the activities of the European Union-Azerbaijan Parliamentary Cooperation Committee is also terminated. As Report.az wrote, Parliament Speaker Sahiba Gafarova said that Milli Majlis would consider the issue related to “anti-Azerbaijani activities of the European Parliament” and take retaliatory measures.
Azerbaijani MPs accuse the European Parliament of adopting “anti-Azerbaijani” resolutions over the past 10 years.
As the BBC wrote, the EU parliament has indeed passed resolutions that address both respect for the rights of Karabakh Armenians and Azerbaijanis, even demanding that the European Commission “refuse Azerbaijani gas and impose personal sanctions against Azerbaijani officials because of systematic human rights violations in the country.” “But Azerbaijan has traditionally emphasized issues specifically related to Armenians,” the BBC note reads.
Also, as Logos Press previously wrote, in April, the parliaments of Belgium and the Netherlands adopted resolutions demanding that Azerbaijan immediately release former Nagorno-Karabakh leaders and others detained since the events of 2023. They also expressed “deep concern” about the preservation of Armenian monuments in Karabakh. The Dutch document mentions the possibility of revising some aspects of the energy and economic partnership with Baku if “human rights and international law are not respected.” In response, Baku protested to the ambassadors of these countries, and the Milli Majlis demanded “to put an end to the hate campaign against Azerbaijan and steps that strike a blow to the efforts to strengthen peace in the region”.
