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BARONESS COX REVEALS BAKU'S TRUE FACE DURING DEBATE ON UK-AZERI TIES
PanARMENIAN.Net - Member of the UK House of Lords, chair of the
British-Armenian All-Party Parliamentary Group Baroness Caroline Cox
delivered remarks during a debate on UK's relations with Azerbaijan
and the South Caucasus.
"I have visited the region 78 times, many during the war against
Nagorno Karabakh. I regret that my contribution to this debate will
be unpopular, because it is critical of Azerbaijan, but it is based
on first-hand evidence," Baroness Cox said.
"I begin with a brief reference to aspects of recent history relevant
to current issues. I visited Azerbaijan in 1991, when I met the
then president and political leaders. I was dismayed by the explicit
commitment to ethnic cleansing of the Armenians from Nagorno Karabakh.
I also visited Karabakh then and met Azeris living in homes which had
recently been owned by Armenians who had been evicted by Azerbaijan's
well documented policy, Operation Ring, in which Armenian villagers
were surrounded by Azeri troops who killed, tortured and drove
villagers off their land," she continued.
"The Armenians were the primary victims as they had already been
victims in the massacres in Baku and Sumgait. Then Azerbaijan unleashed
full-scale war. I witnessed 400 Grad missiles daily raining onto
Karabakh's capital city, an aerial bombardment of civilian homes
with 500 kilogram bombs. I also witnessed war crimes perpetrated by
Azerbaijan on Armenian civilians at Karabakh, such as the cold-blooded
massacre of villagers in Maragha. I was there hours afterwards and saw
corpses whose heads had been sawn off and burnt, mutilated bodies. I
visited Khojaly and can testify that the tragic events were not as
portrayed by Azerbaijan-a massacre of Azeris by Armenians. Independent
journalists and Azerbaijan's former President Mutalibov have publicly
come to the same conclusion," Baroness Cox emphasized.
She also noted that the Armenian forces' taking control over the
territories surrounding Nagorno Karabakh was not aggressive land
grabbing, but essential for survival, as they were used as bases for
constant shelling of towns and villages inside Karabakh. "I was there
when one ceasefire was broken by Azerbaijan, with renewed bombing
from Azeri bases in these lands," she said.
"This recent history is relevant to current concerns as the 1994
ceasefire is precarious. There is an urgent need for peace for the
peoples of Azerbaijan and Armenia and because the peoples of the south
Caucasus do not want another destabilizing regional war. However,
Azerbaijan's continuing hostile policies are detrimental to attempts
to reach a solution to this semi-frozen conflict. For example, the
noble Lord, Lord Laird, mentioned the case of Ramil Safarov, the Azeri
military officer who used an axe to murder an Armenian officer in his
sleep while both men were attending a NATO course in Budapest in 2004.
Safarov was arrested, convicted and sentenced to a lengthy term of
imprisonment. But, when Hungary repatriated Safarov to Azerbaijan, on
the understanding that he would continue to serve his prison sentence,
he was released from prison and welcomed as a hero. According to the
Economist in September 2012, this led to a new war of words in one
of the world's most volatile regions," she said.
"Patrick Ventrell, spokesman for the US State Department, said that
the United States was extremely troubled by the pardon of Safarov and
would be seeking an explanation from both Budapest and Baku. Russia,
involved in trying to ease relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan,
said that the actions of the Hungarian and Azeri Governments
contradicted internationally brokered efforts to bring peace to the
region. May I ask the Minister what representations have been made
by Her Majesty's Government to Azerbaijan concerning the release and
the honouring of the convicted murderer Safarov?
The Economist also raised questions about the EU's credibility when
it pledged [email protected] million to reform oil-rich Azerbaijan's justice
and migration systems. Since 2006, Azerbaijan's economy, with its
vast oil and gas reserves, has nearly tripled to $62 billion. May I
ask the Minister what the EU's justification was in giving [email protected]
million to such a wealthy country? Moreover, there is widely-held
concern over Azerbaijan's massive investment in its military arsenal-a
20-fold increase in seven years. Apart from expenditure on arms,
in a nation where many still live in poverty, there is deep anxiety
over the propensity to renew war with Nagorno-Karabakh. This danger
is exacerbated by Azerbaijan's constant use of belligerent and hostile
propaganda, which is not conducive to confidence-building or effective
peace negotiations," the Baroness noted.
Finally Baroness Caroline Cox referred to Azerbaijan's disturbing
record on human rights, particularly on freedom of the press and
religious freedom.
"No country has an interest in other countries, only interests-and
we have oil interests in Azerbaijan," she concluded.
"Azerbaijan pours massive funds into propaganda, disseminating
positive images of its progress while trying to prevent access to
Karabakh by intimidating potential visitors who wish to see the
situation there for themselves. After one of my visits in recent
years, an article appeared in an Azeri newspaper, entitled "Shoot
the Cox!". Parliamentarians visiting Armenia receive letters from
Azeri authorities threatening to place them on a blacklist if they
visit Karabakh. The British Ambassador is still not allowed to visit
Karabakh, although the political and diplomatic representatives
of other nations do so. Therefore, it is hard for the Armenians of
Karabakh to have their story of Azerbaijan's policies told.
I deeply regret having had to make such a critical speech. Of course,
I can be accused of partiality, but if my contribution is partial,
it is accurate, based on first-hand evidence and corroborated by
many independent sources. I hope it is helpful to put on record some
often untold aspects of the situation, because the search for a just
and lasting peace can only be based on an understanding of historic
and contemporary reality in all its multi-faceted complexity,"
she stressed.
PanARMENIAN.Net - Member of the UK House of Lords, chair of the
British-Armenian All-Party Parliamentary Group Baroness Caroline Cox
delivered remarks during a debate on UK's relations with Azerbaijan
and the South Caucasus.
"I have visited the region 78 times, many during the war against
Nagorno Karabakh. I regret that my contribution to this debate will
be unpopular, because it is critical of Azerbaijan, but it is based
on first-hand evidence," Baroness Cox said.
"I begin with a brief reference to aspects of recent history relevant
to current issues. I visited Azerbaijan in 1991, when I met the
then president and political leaders. I was dismayed by the explicit
commitment to ethnic cleansing of the Armenians from Nagorno Karabakh.
I also visited Karabakh then and met Azeris living in homes which had
recently been owned by Armenians who had been evicted by Azerbaijan's
well documented policy, Operation Ring, in which Armenian villagers
were surrounded by Azeri troops who killed, tortured and drove
villagers off their land," she continued.
"The Armenians were the primary victims as they had already been
victims in the massacres in Baku and Sumgait. Then Azerbaijan unleashed
full-scale war. I witnessed 400 Grad missiles daily raining onto
Karabakh's capital city, an aerial bombardment of civilian homes
with 500 kilogram bombs. I also witnessed war crimes perpetrated by
Azerbaijan on Armenian civilians at Karabakh, such as the cold-blooded
massacre of villagers in Maragha. I was there hours afterwards and saw
corpses whose heads had been sawn off and burnt, mutilated bodies. I
visited Khojaly and can testify that the tragic events were not as
portrayed by Azerbaijan-a massacre of Azeris by Armenians. Independent
journalists and Azerbaijan's former President Mutalibov have publicly
come to the same conclusion," Baroness Cox emphasized.
She also noted that the Armenian forces' taking control over the
territories surrounding Nagorno Karabakh was not aggressive land
grabbing, but essential for survival, as they were used as bases for
constant shelling of towns and villages inside Karabakh. "I was there
when one ceasefire was broken by Azerbaijan, with renewed bombing
from Azeri bases in these lands," she said.
"This recent history is relevant to current concerns as the 1994
ceasefire is precarious. There is an urgent need for peace for the
peoples of Azerbaijan and Armenia and because the peoples of the south
Caucasus do not want another destabilizing regional war. However,
Azerbaijan's continuing hostile policies are detrimental to attempts
to reach a solution to this semi-frozen conflict. For example, the
noble Lord, Lord Laird, mentioned the case of Ramil Safarov, the Azeri
military officer who used an axe to murder an Armenian officer in his
sleep while both men were attending a NATO course in Budapest in 2004.
Safarov was arrested, convicted and sentenced to a lengthy term of
imprisonment. But, when Hungary repatriated Safarov to Azerbaijan, on
the understanding that he would continue to serve his prison sentence,
he was released from prison and welcomed as a hero. According to the
Economist in September 2012, this led to a new war of words in one
of the world's most volatile regions," she said.
"Patrick Ventrell, spokesman for the US State Department, said that
the United States was extremely troubled by the pardon of Safarov and
would be seeking an explanation from both Budapest and Baku. Russia,
involved in trying to ease relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan,
said that the actions of the Hungarian and Azeri Governments
contradicted internationally brokered efforts to bring peace to the
region. May I ask the Minister what representations have been made
by Her Majesty's Government to Azerbaijan concerning the release and
the honouring of the convicted murderer Safarov?
The Economist also raised questions about the EU's credibility when
it pledged [email protected] million to reform oil-rich Azerbaijan's justice
and migration systems. Since 2006, Azerbaijan's economy, with its
vast oil and gas reserves, has nearly tripled to $62 billion. May I
ask the Minister what the EU's justification was in giving [email protected]
million to such a wealthy country? Moreover, there is widely-held
concern over Azerbaijan's massive investment in its military arsenal-a
20-fold increase in seven years. Apart from expenditure on arms,
in a nation where many still live in poverty, there is deep anxiety
over the propensity to renew war with Nagorno-Karabakh. This danger
is exacerbated by Azerbaijan's constant use of belligerent and hostile
propaganda, which is not conducive to confidence-building or effective
peace negotiations," the Baroness noted.
Finally Baroness Caroline Cox referred to Azerbaijan's disturbing
record on human rights, particularly on freedom of the press and
religious freedom.
"No country has an interest in other countries, only interests-and
we have oil interests in Azerbaijan," she concluded.
"Azerbaijan pours massive funds into propaganda, disseminating
positive images of its progress while trying to prevent access to
Karabakh by intimidating potential visitors who wish to see the
situation there for themselves. After one of my visits in recent
years, an article appeared in an Azeri newspaper, entitled "Shoot
the Cox!". Parliamentarians visiting Armenia receive letters from
Azeri authorities threatening to place them on a blacklist if they
visit Karabakh. The British Ambassador is still not allowed to visit
Karabakh, although the political and diplomatic representatives
of other nations do so. Therefore, it is hard for the Armenians of
Karabakh to have their story of Azerbaijan's policies told.
I deeply regret having had to make such a critical speech. Of course,
I can be accused of partiality, but if my contribution is partial,
it is accurate, based on first-hand evidence and corroborated by
many independent sources. I hope it is helpful to put on record some
often untold aspects of the situation, because the search for a just
and lasting peace can only be based on an understanding of historic
and contemporary reality in all its multi-faceted complexity,"
she stressed.