BAKU, Azerbaijan, Dec.28
Trend:
French President Emmanuel Macron, during a meeting with representatives of the Armenian community a few days after the signing of the well-known document on Armenia's surrender on November 10, had expressed doubts about the personality and behavior of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Member of Azerbaijan’s Parliament Arzu Naghiyev said in a comment to the local Real TV channel, Trend reports.
According to Naghiyev, the president said that he repeatedly contacted Pashinyan during the war, offered his support, and even wrote SMS messages, but he never called him himself or asked for anything.
France and Macron personally had political, economic, and military interests in the occupied territories, so the Macron government cannot reconcile with the loss of these territories, he noted.
"After the 44-day war, the position of France, including Macron, has not changed. Political, economic, and humanitarian support for the ‘younger sister’-Armenia continued, despite the fact that, as the co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, France had to demonstrate a neutral position,” the MP added.
“Seemingly, Emmanuelle Macron understood the mandate of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair only in terms of protecting the interests of Armenia and acted accordingly. Macron's statements and actions once again show that France's actions did not meet the requirements of a balanced, fair co-chairmanship and it will continue to demonstrate an inadequate position,” concluded Naghiyev.
Following over a month of military action to liberate its territories from Armenian occupation from late Sept. to early Nov. 2020, Azerbaijan has pushed Armenia to sign the surrender document. A joint statement on the matter was made by the Azerbaijani president, Armenia's PM, and the president of Russia.
A complete ceasefire and a cessation of all hostilities in the zone of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was introduced on Nov. 10, 2020.
Armenian Armed Forces launched a large-scale military attack on positions of the Azerbaijani army on the front line, using large-caliber weapons, mortars, and artillery on Sept. 27. Azerbaijan responded with a counter-offensive along the entire front.
Back in July 2020, the Armenian Armed Forces violated the ceasefire in the direction of Azerbaijan's Tovuz district. As a result of Azerbaijan's retaliation, the opposing forces were silenced. The fighting continued the following days as well. Azerbaijan lost a number of military personnel members, who died fighting off the attacks of the Armenian Armed Forces.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, the Armenian Armed Forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations.