A call of special importance Paris changes its tone

The Iranian attack on the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan has been condemned by nearly the entire international community. President Ilham Aliyev continues to receive phone calls from the leaders of various countries. These conversations have outlined the contours of a broad international coalition of solidarity forming around Azerbaijan.

The President of France, Emmanuel Macron, has not remained on the sidelines either.

As reported by the press service of the Azerbaijani president, on March 8, Emmanuel Macron held a phone call with Ilham Aliyev.

“President Emmanuel Macron affirmed his country's solidarity and support with Azerbaijan in connection with Iran’s airstrike on Azerbaijan. President Macron also expressed his gratitude to President Ilham Aliyev for the conditions created for the evacuation of French citizens from Iran via Azerbaijan.

President Ilham Aliyev thanked for the phone call and the solidarity shown.

During the telephone conversation, the two leaders exchanged views on solidifying peace in the South Caucasus region and revitalizing Azerbaijan-France bilateral relations, as well as discussed the prospects for cooperation,” the statement said.

This represents a very positive signal, as relations between the two countries had long been strained due to a series of destructive steps taken by the French side. President Ilham Aliyev also addressed this issue in his interview with France 24. In particular, the Azerbaijani leader emphasized that with the outbreak of the Second Karabakh War and following the restoration of Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity, France’s position unfortunately became increasingly difficult to understand.

“[...] France is defending the territorial integrity of countries. It tries to defend its own territorial integrity. Now it defends the territorial integrity of Denmark. They defend the territorial integrity of Ukraine, but unfortunately, they supported separatists. More than 10 resolutions of the National Assembly and Senate were aimed at supporting separatists, and even your parliament recognized so-called Nagorno-Karabakh, though even Armenia did not recognize it. 

Moreover, after the Second Garabagh War of 2020, before the anti-terror operation of 2023, very famous French personalities like Madame Pécresse, Monsieur Barnier, Monsieur Retailleau, all the names are familiar to the audience, illegally visited Garabagh and supported the separatists. So that was an open insult to Azerbaijan’s statehood and a total sign of disrespect. All that has been said or done by us was done and said in response. Maybe it was harsh. It's difficult to measure.

But I think what is important is, as you mentioned, my meeting with President Macron at the end of last year, which was very positive, and we agreed to put a restart button. We are ready for that. The last thing we need is to have problems with any country, including France. Again, it was not our initiative, but now I think both sides are more ready for normal relations, especially after Armenia and Azerbaijan have already achieved peace,” Ilham Aliyev stated.

It was the absolute truth. France supported Armenia’s occupation of 20 per cent of Azerbaijan’s territories at various levels. France welcomed the leaders of the Karabakh separatist regime and attempted to secure the condemnation of Azerbaijan — including at the United Nations — for restoring its sovereignty and territorial integrity in accordance with international law. All of this indeed took place.

One can only hope that these developments have now been firmly consigned to the past. This hope is not based solely on the fact that Baku and Yerevan are demonstrating a mutual commitment to signing a peace agreement. The phone call from Emmanuel Macron to the Azerbaijani president, expressing words of support, also provides grounds for optimism regarding the future development of relations between the two countries. We believe that this step serves as a confirmation that relations between the two states have indeed moved beyond a period of chill and will continue to develop along a positive trajectory.