Statement in the run-up to COP29 to take place in Baku Azerbaijan

5 November 2024 Brussels: In the run up to COP29 to take place in Baku later this month, 52 Members of the European Parliament (MEP) address three main demands to the Government of Azerbaijan and the EU executive leadership, concerning the Armenian prisoners of war in Azerbaijan, the Armenian cultural heritage in Nagorno Karabakh/Artsakh as well as the Azerbaijani aggression against the Republic of Armenia. The Members of the European Parliament who co-signed, are from the main political groups, such as EPP, S&D, Renew, ECR, Greens/EFA, the Left as well as non-attached MEPs.

In the statement published today, the EU parliamentarians elaborate: “In the run-up to Conference of the Parties – COP29 to be held in Azerbaijan in November 2024, we would like to emphasize that besides being an impactful and significant conference on climate, it also embodies commitment to principles of justice and human dignity. Hence, it is of paramount importance for the host country, in this case Azerbaijan, to showcase commitment to these principles too.”

The Members of the European Parliament state, “In line with the relevant resolutions and reports of the European Parliament, adopted since May 2021, we call on the Azerbaijani Government to

- immediately and unconditionally release all Armenian prisoners of war, hostages and captives in Baku, including the military-political leadership of Nagorno Karabakh;

- ensure that the Armenian cultural and religious heritage in Nagorno Karabakh stays intact, including the monasteries khachkars and refrain from their albanisation as well as history revisionism;

- refrain from threats and any aggression against the Republic of Armenia, withdraw the Azerbaijani military forces from the occupied territories of the Republic of Armenia.”

Furthermore, the EU parliamentarians “call on the EU Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy to heed the above-mentioned resolutions adopted by the European Parliament and act in their spirit”.

Commenting on the statement the President of the European Armenian Federation for Justice and Democracy (EAFJD), Kaspar Karampetian said, “This call of the EU parliamentarians comes as a clear signal addressed both to the Azerbaijani and the EU leadership right before COP29. The EAFJD has been continuously sensitizing the MEPs on the issues covered in the statement, and we are grateful to them as well as to the European Parliament in general for being the voice of justice”.

“It is needless to say that the EAFJD, as a European grassroot organisations, will continue holding the EU executive accountable and working towards ensuring that it takes impactful steps in this direction,” concluded Karampetian.

Statement in the run-up to COP29 to take place in Baku Azerbaijan

In the run-up to Conference of the Parties – COP29 to be held in Azerbaijan in November 2024, we would like to emphasize that besides being an impactful and significant conference on climate, it also embodies commitment to principles of justice and human dignity. Hence, it is of paramount importance for the host country, in this case Azerbaijan, to showcase commitment to these principles too.

In line with the relevant resolutions and reports of the European Parliament, adopted since May 2021, we call on the Azerbaijani Government to

- immediately and unconditionally release all Armenian prisoners of war, hostages and captives in Baku, including the military-political leadership of Nagorno Karabakh;

- ensure that the Armenian cultural and religious heritage in Nagorno Karabakh stays intact, including the monasteries khachkars and refrain from their albanisation as well as history revisionism;

- refrain from threats and any aggression against the Republic of Armenia, withdraw the Azerbaijani military forces from the occupied territories of the Republic of Armenia.