On Thursday 24 October, the European Parliament adopted by a large majority (453 votes in favour, 31 against and 89 abstentions) a resolution condemning the repression of activists, journalists and opponents of the regime in Azerbaijan. It regrets holding COP29 in Baku, but does not call for a boycott, as some political groups were calling for (see EUROPE 13509/12).
MEPs consider that “the human rights abuses currently being perpetrated by Azerbaijan are incompatible with its status as host country of COP29”. They call on EU leaders to seize the opportunity of the UN climate conference to “remind Azerbaijan of its international obligations and to meaningfully address the country’s human rights record in their interactions with the Azerbaijani authorities”.
In its resolution, the European Parliament calls for the charges against the economist Gubad Ibadoghlu, nominated for the 2024 Sakharov Prize by the Greens/EFA group (see other news), and of all those arbitrarily detained, to be dropped.
Conflict with Armenia. Regarding the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh (see EUROPE 12606/7), Azerbaijan must withdraw its troops from the sovereign territory of Armenia, says the European Parliament, which is calling for the normalisation of relations between the two countries and the signing of a peace agreement.
In the meantime, MEPs are calling on the Member States to freeze exports of all military and security equipment to Azerbaijan.
Gas imports. Finally, MEPs are calling for a solution to Europe’s dependence on Azerbaijani gas. The memorandum of understanding signed by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, in 2022 must be suspended, they say (see EUROPE 12995/15).
Read the joint resolution: https://aeur.eu/f/e0p (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)