Armenia's claim falls outside ICJ jurisdiction – Azerbaijani official

Azerbaijan's appeal to the UN International Court of Justice on the application of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination concerns the very essence of this document, unlike Armenia's suit filed on the same grounds.

Deputy Foreign Minister Elnur Mammadov said this during a hearing on Azerbaijan's rebuttals to Armenia's objections in court yesterday, Report informs.

"Azerbaijan explained last week that Armenia's claim does not comply with the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice because Armenia rushed the claim without giving negotiations a chance, or largely because it misused the convention in an attempt to present other charges related to the armed conflict to the court," he said.

Mammadov said that Azerbaijan's appeal touches the very essence of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, as it touches on the issue of 30 years of ethnic cleansing and Armenia's related destruction of the cultural and historical heritage of the Azerbaijani population in the former occupied territories.

"Armenia has carried out a systematic campaign to expel the Azerbaijani population from their places of ancestral origin to create a mono-ethnic Armenian population in that place. The facts and evidence presented by Azerbaijan regarding the purposeful placement of mines and environmental crimes are only a part of this systematic and racially motivated campaign," the deputy minister added.