Azerbaijani president claims Armenian PM declines meeting in UK

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has spoken about a meeting planned to be held in the UK with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

“In the meantime, the process of agreeing on the text is continuing. I don't know when the next meeting of foreign ministers will be. I am now less optimistic because, as you probably know, Prime Minister Pashinyan refused to meet with me in the UK. The UK government proposed organising a meeting between us on the sidelines of an event in Oxfordshire. But the Armenian side refused. We were surprised,” the president said at the 2nd Shusha Global Media Forum themed  “Unmasking False Narratives: Confronting Disinformation”, Caliber.Az reports citing the local media.

“Because just four months ago, Chancellor Scholz organised this meeting in Munich where he participated for five to six minutes. And then he left. That was a kind of modality of the meeting. He would meet with both leaders, and then say some introductory remarks, and then leave. And that was what happened. So, the UK government proposed the same with participation of the prime minister of the UK. But Prime Minister Pashinyan refused. If he doesn’t want to talk to me, then what kind of peace are we talking about? If he doesn’t want to talk to the UK prime minister, then why did he go to London to Oxfordshire? So, there are a lot of things, which are in deep contradiction, but we will see,” the president added.

The 2nd Shusha Global Media Forum on "Unmasking False Narratives: Confronting Disinformation" is taking place in the cultural capital of Azerbaijan on July 20-22.

The Forum, attended by over 150 foreign guests from around 50 countries, including news agencies of 30 countries, three international organizations, and 82 media entities, provides a platform for joint discussions and actions among participants.

The first Shusha Global Media Forum themed “New Media in the Era of the 4th Industrial Revolution” was held on July 21-23, 2023.

The forum includes four panel sessions on "Assessing Impact: Setting the Scope of Disinformation", "Policies and Initiatives for Building a More Disinformation Resistant Society", "The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Reality, Media and Disinformation: Promoting Media Literacy" and "The Climate Movement and Media".

Officials, media and civil society, government officials and businessmen, representatives of international organisations and media experts from various countries are exchanging views and experiences at the panel sessions.

These sessions facilitate discussions among officials from various countries, media and civil society representatives, international organization representatives, and media experts. Participants are exchanging views and share experience on the highlighted topics.