Written declaration No. 475 | Doc. 12583 | 12 April 2011

Non-compliance of Azerbaijan with its commitments

Signatories: Ms Zaruhi POSTANJYAN, Armenia, EPP/CD ; Mr Denis BADRÉ, France, ALDE ; Mr Gagik BAGHDASARYAN, Armenia, NR ; Mr Roland BLUM, France, EPP/CD ; Ms Giuliana CARLINO, Italy, ALDE ; Mr Hans FRANKEN, Netherlands, EPP/CD ; Mr Ljubo GERMIČ, Slovenia, ALDE ; Ms Ana GUŢU, Republic of Moldova, ALDE ; Mr Davit HARUTYUNYAN, Armenia, EDG ; Sir Edward LEIGH, United Kingdom, EDG ; Ms Muriel MARLAND-MILITELLO, France, EPP/CD ; Sir Alan MEALE, United Kingdom, SOC ; Mr Krasimir MINCHEV, Bulgaria, EPP/CD ; Ms Hermine NAGHDALYAN, Armenia, ALDE ; Mr Joseph O'REILLY, Ireland, EPP/CD ; Ms Elsa PAPADIMITRIOU, Greece, EPP/CD ; Mr Gabino PUCHE, Spain, EPP/CD ; Mr Frédéric REISS, France, EPP/CD ; Mr François ROCHEBLOINE, France, EPP/CD ; Ms Maria de Belém ROSEIRA, Portugal, SOC ; Mr Armen RUSTAMYAN, Armenia, SOC ; Mr Ivan SAVVIDI, Russian Federation, EDG ; Mr Fiorenzo STOLFI, San Marino, SOC ; Mr Miltiadis VARVITSIOTIS, Greece, EPP/CD ; Ms Naira ZOHRABYAN, Armenia, ALDE

This written declaration commits only those who have signed it.

After cease-fire was reached between Azerbaijan, Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan spares no efforts to escalate the fragile situation and thus endangering the peaceful resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

We are deeply concerned by the continued policy of Azerbaijan to provoke a military solution to the conflict by using the war propaganda, increasing the military budget, the violation of arms control treaties, rejecting confidence building, threats to use force and the use of force.

Another worrying example of the militaristic rhetoric of Azerbaijan, which maintains the blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh since 1989, is the recent hostile statements to shoot civilian aircraft flying over Karabakh. In this respect we recall that Azerbaijan is a party to ICAO, under which it pledged not to attack civilian airplanes.

Armenia has consistently been putting forward proposals to withdraw snipers from the contact line while Azerbaijan has been pointedly rejecting them. The alleged death of a child is a ploy by Azerbaijan to shun its commitments on a peaceful resolution of the conflict and serves as a casus belli and pretext to disavow the latest agreements on confidence-building measures.

We urge Azerbaijan to accept proposals and to comply with its commitment towards a peaceful settlement of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.