Azerbaijan's relations with PACE hit rock-bottom low after Baku's mandate suspended “Azerbaijanophobia & Islamophobia in PACE” blamed for suspension

Relations between Azerbaijan and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) have hit rock-bottom low following the latter’s move not to endorse the Azerbaijani delegation’s credentials.

The 24 January 2024 PACE decision to suspend the Azerbaijani delegation's mandate for a year suggests the already strained relations between Strasbourg and Baku will further deteriorate in view of the latter’s determination to defend national interests.

PACE's desire to turn Azerbaijan into an obedient executor of its instructions with inappropriate recommendations depriving Baku of any rights to question their relevancy has always faced Baku resistance and would always be so if the latter decides to resume its activities there.

History of PACE move

Making the anti-Azerbaijani challenge, Frank Schwabe (Germany, SOC) cited “political prisoners in the country, the violent displacement of people from Nagorno-Karabakh, the fact that Assembly rapporteurs were unable to visit Azerbaijan at least three times during 2023, and the lack of an invitation to the Assembly to observe the country’s February 7, 2024, snap presidential elections” as reasons for his motion.

The challenge was immediately referred to the Assembly’s Monitoring Committee for the report and to its Rules Committee for opinion and was debated by the Assembly on 24 January and was adopted with 76 votes in favor, 10 against, and 4 abstentions.

Unveiling PACE's “Azerbaijanophobia & Islamophobia”

Ahead of the PACE move to challenge the credentials of the Azerbaijani delegation, Baku moved forward rapidly to declare the suspension of its cooperation with the parliamentary arm of CoE, presenting it with a fait accompli.

The Azerbaijani delegation said in a statement on January 24 that they "decided to suspend, for an indefinite period, cooperation with PACE and participation in the organization due to the unbearable atmosphere of racism, Azerbaijanophobia, and Islamophobia at PACE".

The suspension of the Azerbaijani delegation’s mandate could have significant diplomatic and political repercussions, potentially affecting both Azerbaijan's standing within the CoE and its relations with other European nations and the latter’s reputation in Azerbaijan.

The PACE decision on Azerbaijan is groundless and absurd since the claim on the "violent displacement of people from Nagorno-Karabakh" and Baku's "refusal" to allow a visit by PACE representatives to the Lachin Corridor are wide off the mark since it was disproved by UN fact-finding mission on the scene months ago this claim was sounded. The UN mission said in its statement that during the military operations carried out by Azerbaijan, no damage was inflicted on the civil infrastructure, schools, and hospitals in Khankendi and other areas.

PACE’s reference to the defunct and illegal entity, that is, the Nagorno-Karabakh, is a striking example of the organization’s bias and disrespect for Azerbaijan’s sovereignty and raises important questions about its loyalty to member state’s independence. Second, the claims that the official Baku exerted pressure and committed violence against Armenians of Karabakh hold no water.

Also, the issue of political prisoners is a frequent matter to put pressure on Azerbaijan. Baku had not invited PACE to monitor the 7 February presidential elections because of the organization's "anti-Azerbaijani bias".

As for PACE’s next argument that Azerbaijan did not allow a visit to the Lachin Corridor in 2023 to observe the situation in Karabakh, this is another toothless move since the group wanted to enter Azerbaijan from Armenia and thus was prevented as the respect for the nation’s hard-won sovereignty is a must for any international organization.

PACE has turned a blind eye to the occupation of Azerbaijani territories for 30 years and has shown a special attitude toward Armenia. In its relations with Azerbaijan, the institution was only driven by issues related to Armenians and considered only this topic as a priority.

Azerbaijan’s liberation of its historical lands from occupation annoyed and disgruntled almost all pan-European institutions. Neither the Council of Europe, PACE nor others with high-profile slogans on the respect for human rights and territorial integrity of nations backed Azerbaijan’s efforts and turned a blind to calls to dispatch fact-finding missions to the Karabakh region, devastated by Armenia during the 30-year-long occupation.

PACE as well neither discussed imposing any sanctions on Armenia nor urged it to implement those resolutions, or limited its delegation’s voting rights. PACE with an indifferent approach to Azerbaijan’s core issues proves disinterestedness in developing relations with Baku, using freedom of thought, speech, and other issues as pretexts to advance its own agenda and use it as a tool of manipulation against official Baku.

Throughout visits to Azerbaijan during the Armenian occupation, PACE representatives avoided meetings with IDPs and now after Baku succeeded in restoring its independence, there is no way to neglect its own interests in relations with PACE or any pan-European agencies.

Since Azerbaijan’s membership of PACE in 2001, it has used the ‘political prisoners’ issue as a means of pressure against Baku. About the final remark of PACE that official Baku did not invite a PACE delegation to observe the 7 February snap presidential election, Azerbaijan has always invited international organizations, including PACE to both presidential and parliamentary elections and it concluded that the 2020 parliamentary elections were “free, fair, and transparent”.

However, after Azerbaijan restored its territorial integrity in September 2023, PACE was one of the organizations that attacked Azerbaijan and was irritated with the country's successes to this end. PACE, under the European Union's political influence, drew attention with its non-objective approach under the influence of Brussels and Paris in the past months, thereby damaging its international reputation. The institution's approach to Azerbaijan also allows us to notice that it takes a biased and far from objective position regarding the election process and Azerbaijan in general.

Certain interest groups in Europe are pushing to limit Azerbaijan's autonomy in choosing its foreign partners to influence Azerbaijan's foreign alliances and create obstacles, hoping to force it to give up sovereign decision-making in foreign policy. However, Baku has always championed and defended its own national interests. Currently restrained in its reaction to the upcoming elections, Azerbaijan will take a more open stance on these issues after the polls.