Luxembourg’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Xavier Bettel addressed the South Caucasus issue during a PACE session. He stated that the rights of Armenians forcibly displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh must be protected.
“Their rights are guaranteed by the European Convention on Human Rights. Their right to safely return to their homes must also be respected,” Bettel emphasized.
He also thanked the Secretary General of the Council of Europe for the efforts in this direction.
During the PACE session, a discussion was also held on the topic “Execution of ECHR judgments.” Armenian MP Arusyak Julhakyan reminded that Ilham Aliyev had declared a day earlier that Azerbaijan does not intend to implement ECHR rulings.
“Can this be acceptable to us? Unexecuted judgments undermine the authority and functioning of the Convention system. Steps must be taken to introduce new mechanisms for enforcement or consider the possibility of sanctions,” Julhakyan stated.
Armenian PACE delegation member Armen Gevorgyan added that “Ilham Aliyev has already deprived tens of thousands of Armenians of their rights, conducts sham trials against Armenian prisoners, and is now depriving Azerbaijani citizens of access to justice in Strasbourg.”
