Azerbaijan’s right to justice: European Parliament’s double standards on Armenian detainees

A Canadian media outlet has published an article urging the European Parliament to focus on tackling its own deep-rooted corruption problem and restoring damaged public trust, rather than trying to interfere in Azerbaijan's internal affairs. Caliber.Az offers its readers excerpts from the piece.

In recent weeks, the European Parliament has taken up an absurd debate on Azerbaijan’s detention of Armenian citizens captured during the Karabakh war. The Armenian lobby within the European Parliament has aggressively pushed a distorted narrative, portraying these detainees as innocent victims. In truth, these individuals face serious criminal charges in Azerbaijan, including torture, mercenary activity, war crimes, terrorism, and financing terrorism—offenses under Azerbaijan’s criminal code.

Yet, European Parliament members seem unconcerned with these grave accusations. Instead, their primary concern is the fact that Azerbaijan is detaining these Armenian suspects at all. On March 12, a discussion in Strasbourg titled “Illegal Detention and Show Trials of Armenian Hostages, Including Senior Political Representatives from Karabakh, by Azerbaijan” illustrated how this campaign is not about justice, but about damaging Azerbaijan’s reputation in Europe and the West.

Azerbaijan is unsurprised by the European Parliament’s hostile stance, as this is just the latest example of Armenian interests being promoted at its expense. Similar trends are visible in other European institutions, including the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

This ongoing bias is just one of many double standards Azerbaijan must contend with. The Azerbaijani government has repeatedly emphasized that it is acting strictly within the boundaries of both national and international law. The trial taking place in Baku against those accused of serious crimes is an internal legal matter, and any external interference is both unacceptable and unjustified.

This is not the first time the European Parliament has raised the issue of Armenian prisoners in Azerbaijan. Just last month, urgent discussions were held regarding so-called “Armenian prisoners in Azerbaijan,” with certain European lawmakers consistently pushing Armenian interests. Among them, Cypriot MEP Costas Mavrides has been particularly vocal, previously advocating for recognition of the self-declared “Nagorno-Karabakh Republic” and repeatedly seeking to harm Azerbaijan’s image on the international stage.

Before the parliamentary discussion, Mavrides told the media that he had proposed a resolution calling for the “immediate release of Armenian prisoners.” But the question remains: are these actions driven by ideological motives, or by financial incentives? Many statements against Azerbaijan appear to be influenced not by principles, but by personal economic interests. Several European Parliament members have close ties to Armenian oligarchs and their financial networks. How, then, can their motives be trusted?

It is not only Azerbaijan that faces such unfair scrutiny. Its ally, Israel, has also been subjected to biased treatment within the European Parliament, particularly in discussions surrounding the Gaza conflict following the October 7 attacks. In these debates, Israel was constantly scrutinized—questioned over its military actions, accused of mistakes, and even labeled as committing genocide.

Yet, the same intensity was not applied to examining Hamas’s atrocities against Israeli civilians—the mass killings, rapes, and hostage-taking on October 7. There was little discussion about the conditions of Israeli hostages, the treatment of the wounded, or the horrors inflicted on innocent victims. The European Parliament seemed far more focused on condemning Israel than on acknowledging the unspeakable crimes committed against its people. Israel has long since realized that this institution is not guided by principles of justice but by political interests and hollow ideological rhetoric.

Beyond its biased policies, the European Parliament’s credibility is further eroded by widespread corruption scandals. One of the most infamous cases occurred in December 2022, when Belgian authorities uncovered a massive bribery operation within EU institutions. Officials seized €1.5 million in cash as part of an investigation into illicit foreign influence.

Unsurprisingly, many figures at the center of this scandal were vocal supporters of the Armenian lobby, including Greek MEP Eva Kaili, former Italian MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri, parliamentary assistant Francesco Giorgi, and NGO leader Niccolò Figà-Talamanca. These individuals were accused of accepting large bribes to manipulate EU political and economic decisions on behalf of foreign powers.

More recently, a corruption probe linked to Chinese telecom giant Huawei has implicated multiple EU lawmakers, leading to arrests and further damaging the European Parliament’s reputation. In response, Huawei lobbyists have been banned from entering European Parliament premises.

Before attempting to interfere in Azerbaijan’s internal legal matters, the European Parliament should focus on addressing its own deep-seated corruption issues and restoring public trust. MEPs should be driven by a genuine pursuit of truth, justice, and peace—not by self-serving political games or financial interests.

The disgraceful behavior of certain European Parliament members towards Azerbaijan tarnishes the institution’s credibility for generations to come. Azerbaijan has the sovereign right to prosecute those who committed crimes within its borders, and the people of Europe deserve to know the truth about what really happened in the South Caucasus.