Azerbaijan, Baku, Aug. 24 / Trend E.Tariverdiyeva /
Azerbaijan welcomes French Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bernard Valero's statement on that the French MPs' illegal visit to the Azerbaijani territories occupied by Armenia does not commit Paris to anything and does not change its position, First Secretary of the Foreign Ministry Spokesman Elman Abdullayev told Trend today.
"It is pity that members of the French National Assembly headed by Guy Tessier, pursuing selfish interests, have run by the Armenian lobby," Abdullayev said.
He said it is sad that the representatives of France, a country that is an example of respect for the international law and the laws, committed illegal actions by visiting the Azerbaijani territories occupied by Armenia without informing Baku.
Earlier, several media outlets reported that French MPs Guy Teissier, Jacques Remile, Georges Colombier and Valerie Boyer have visited the Azerbaijani territories occupied by Armenia and met with the leadership of the unrecognized Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh.
The Azerbaijani Embassy in Paris presented a note protesting the French Foreign Ministry in connection with the French MPs' illegal visit to the Azerbaijani territories occupied by Armenia, Abdullayev told Trend earlier.
The French side has officially confirmed its position stating that this visit is not performed upon the French National Assembly, but upon the personal initiative of the Chairman of the French Assembly's defense and armed forces committee Guy Tessier.
Tessier, who led the delegation, is the mayor of the ninth and tenth arrondissement of Marseille, which is densely populated by Armenians. Teissier is apparently trying to score points in the run-up legislative elections in France in 2012, Azerbaijani Ambassador to France Elchin Amirbekov told Trend.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 surrounding districts.
Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - Russia, France, and the U.S. - are currently holding the peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.