BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 29. The statements made by French Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna, which do not serve peace and stability in the region and demonstrate a unilateral pro-Armenian position, are unacceptable, Spokesman for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Aykhan Hajizada said in response to a question from local media about the opinions expressed by French Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna during her speech at the conference of ambassadors, Trend reports.
"Armenia has kept Azerbaijani lands under occupation for almost 30 years, implemented a policy of ethnic cleansing, genocide and massacres of Azerbaijanis, turning almost 1 million Azerbaijanis into refugees and internally displaced persons and violating their rights. The country has destroyed Azerbaijani towns and villages, cultural and historical monuments belonging to Azerbaijan.
Moreover, Armenia did not stop military and political provocations after the 2020 war and still has not withdrawn full of Azerbaijani troops from the Karabakh region within the framework of the national legislation.
Ignoring all these facts and making accusations against Azerbaijan is categorically wrong.
Azerbaijan is making efforts within the framework of its national legislation to reintegrate Armenians living in the Karabakh region into the political, social and economic spheres of the country, and it is categorically wrong to make accusations against these efforts that a policy of "expelling Armenians from the region" is allegedly being pursued. We once again call on the French side to put an end to such provocative statements," the MFA spokesman said.