BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 25. The Deputy
Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Italy,
responsible for the Caucasus region within the Italian Council of
Ministers and coordinator of the National Directorate of the ruling
Italian party “Brothers of Italy”, Edmondo Cirielli, sharply
criticized the European Parliament’s recently adopted resolution
against Azerbaijan, Trend reports.
According to the MP, he was surprised by the resolution against
Azerbaijan, to which his political party rightfully remains
neutral.
“The parliament is sovereign, but that doesn’t mean that
government representatives cannot express their opinions; we are
democratic countries,” Cirielli also said.
“First of all, the resolution is full of legal and historical
falsifications. Armenia has illegally occupied not only Karabakh
but also adjacent territories for 30 years. However, under the
pretext of protecting Armenians living in this region,
internationally recognized as Azerbaijani territory, more than
750,000 Azerbaijanis were forced to leave their lands as a result
of the war initiated by Armenia,” he emphasized.
Cirielli noted that Armenia returned four Azerbaijani villages,
which it had occupied for decades.
“There are no disputed territories because Armenia itself has
declared this; there is only the question raised by Azerbaijanis
regarding certain provisions of the Armenian Constitution that are
interpreted as revanchism. The resolution adopted by the European
Parliament certainly does not contribute to the rapid signing of a
peace treaty,” he added.
Moreover, he was surprised with the resolution’s criticism of
energy dependence on Azerbaijani gas supplies via Trans-Anatolian
Pipeline (TAP) to Italy.
“European partners have been urging us for years to double these
gas volumes to avoid dependence on Russian gas. Even the accusation
of purchasing Russian gas from Azerbaijan on the international
level is unfounded. Over the past two years of war, there has been
silence regarding the fourfold increase in export and trade
relations between Russia and Armenia due to sanctions that hinder
relations between Europe and Russia.
It is also a fact that the European Union should be interested
in stabilizing the Caucasus from a neutral and equitable position,
fostering relations between the two countries rather than inflaming
conflicts,” the deputy minister added.
To note, the resolution was adopted by 453 votes in favor, 31
against, with 89 abstentions on October 24.
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