French menu of hypocrisy and provocations A new twist of lies in Parisian politics

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot made a statement before the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg: “As for Azerbaijan, I am very concerned about the growing tension at the border. I hope that the European mission deployed there will be expanded so it can observe and de-escalate this tension. Now, a peace treaty must be signed, and the arbitrarily detained and prisoners must be released.” This statement did not go unanswered.

The spokesperson for Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Aykhan Hajizada, stated in a post on his social media page X that France's supply of lethal weapons to Armenia, along with its long-standing anti-Azerbaijani stance, not only fails to contribute to peace but also contradicts Jean-Noël Barrot's claims of concern over regional tensions. This duplicity exposes France's hypocrisy.

According to Hajizada, despite the progress made between Baku and Yerevan in working on the text of a peace agreement, its signing requires the elimination of Armenia's territorial claims enshrined in its constitution, as well as the cessation of third-party interference—especially from France.

It is also worth noting that France, which assumed the role of co-chair country of the OSCE Minsk Group, while pretending to be a neutral "arbitrator" in the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict, has never truly adhered to the principles of neutrality.

The final fig leaf of "mediation" was discarded by France under Emmanuel Macron. During his tenure, Armenia essentially acquired the status of another French colony. Prior to the 44-day war, official Paris turned a blind eye to numerous provocative actions by Yerevan.

At that time, Armenia's Defense Minister, David Tonoyan, stated, "A new war will lead to the capture of new territories of Azerbaijan." The Armenian side repeatedly emphasized the need to strike Azerbaijani export pipelines.

How did the official Paris respond to this? It did nothing. The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs also failed to react to the statement made by Armenia's Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinyan, in occupied Khankendi: "Karabakh is Armenia, period." This effectively signified Yerevan's refusal to engage in peace talks with Baku. Once again, Paris remained silent.

Today, Karabakh is liberated. Azerbaijan's sovereignty and territorial integrity have been fully restored. This became possible thanks to the principled policy of Azerbaijan's leadership, headed by President Ilham Aliyev, in defiance of the Armenian-French plans.

In the summer of 2020, during Armenia's provocation in the Tovuz direction, the Azerbaijani army dealt a severe blow to the enemy: numerous Armenian soldiers, as well as a large amount of military equipment and facilities, were destroyed. Unfortunately, Azerbaijan also suffered losses: among the martyrs were Major General Polad Hashimov, Colonel Ilgar Mirzayev, Major Namig Ahmadov, Major Anar Novruzov, Senior Lieutenant Rashad Mahmudov, Warrant Officer Ilgar Zeynalov, Warrant Officer Yashar Babayev, and conscripts Elchin Mustafazade, Vugar Sadigov, Nazim Ismayilov, Elshad Mammadov, and Khayyam Dashdamirov.

Furthermore, as a result of a shell fired by the Armenians into a house in the village of Aghdam, a civilian, 76-year-old Aziz Aliyev, was killed. The Armenian artillery shelling caused significant damage to the infrastructure in the border villages of the Tovuz region.

Did the official Paris condemn this? Of course not.

During the 44-day war, French President Emmanuel Macron actively defended the occupying country and spread fake news. He made attempts to hinder the implementation of the decisions outlined in the four well-known United Nations Security Council resolutions.

Azerbaijan achieved a historic victory. In response, the French Senate adopted a provocative resolution recognizing the "independence of Artsakh." Meanwhile, official Paris continued to hypocritically claim that it supports Azerbaijan's territorial integrity. This provocative resolution quickly lost all significance. The remnants of the Armenian occupying army were defeated in a one-day counterterrorism operation in the Karabakh economic region of Azerbaijan.

What did Paris do after this? It attempted to initiate the condemnation of Azerbaijan at the UN Security Council — despite the fact that Armenia itself never implemented the Security Council resolutions. France continues to arm Armenia and provide it with political support of an anti-Azerbaijani nature.

The root of this policy is clear: the political loser Emmanuel Macron seeks to justify himself, even if only in his own eyes. That’s why we hear new lies, hypocrisy, and provocative statements from official Paris. They may not influence the real course of events, but they clearly demonstrate how low modern France has fallen.