Yerevan’s immoral campaign ahead of COP29 Baku sees and remembers all

Hikmet Hajiyev, the Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan for Foreign Policy, compellingly described the roots and causes of the dirty campaign launched against the country in the West ahead of the COP29 summit in his article for the influential American magazine Newsweek.

He rightly characterized calls for the release of the leaders of the Karabakh separatists, who are currently under arrest in Baku, and field commanders responsible for war crimes against peaceful Azerbaijanis as “immoral.”

Indeed, there is no better term to describe the attempts to pressure Azerbaijan, which include demands for the release of individuals whose crimes against the country and its people are well-documented, all without a fair trial. Essentially, the collective West, while professing its commitment to fighting terrorism, is advocating for the release of those who personify it. Immorality? Without a doubt!

However, that was not all. In the article for Newsweek, Hikmet Hajiyev pointed out that Armenia had agreed to support Azerbaijan's bid to host COP29, while Azerbaijan agreed to back Armenia's application for membership in the COP Bureau of the Eastern European Group. In other words, this arrangement was a mutually beneficial deal between Baku and Yerevan. Yet, it has been demonstrated once again that the leadership of Armenia is an unreliable partner in any agreement, making trust in official Yerevan futile.

The Armenian government is actively engaged in a campaign to tarnish Azerbaijan’s reputation ahead of COP29. It is no coincidence that Armenian officials frequently make highly revealing statements. Their overall message suggests that Baku and Yerevan should sign a completely unfinished and vague peace agreement before COP29 takes place in Azerbaijan’s capital. Meanwhile, the Armenian leadership refuses to address the reasonable demands of Baku, to abandon the services of the Minsk Group of the OSCE, or to amend the Armenian Constitution, which contains territorial claims against Azerbaijan.

Once again, we refer to Hikmet Hajiyev's article for Newsweek, where the Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan for Foreign Policy reminds us that in 1996, the then-President of Armenia refused to sign the final declaration at the OSCE summit, citing constitutional restrictions that prevent the recognition of Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan. Therefore, official Baku is justified in its demands of official Yerevan.

But that is precisely the issue: the Armenian leadership is once again being hypocritical; it merely pretends to seek peace while genuinely unwilling to remove the barriers to achieving it. Moreover, the hypocrisy of official Yerevan lies in the fact that its representatives actively encourage certain circles within the Armenian diaspora to support the campaign to tarnish Azerbaijan’s reputation ahead of COP29.

A significant role in this has been assigned to Noubar Afeyan, a billionaire of Armenian descent originally from Lebanon. He is the chairman of the board of directors of Moderna, which made a colossal fortune from trading COVID-19 vaccines. Additionally, he is a co-founder of the Aurora Prize and has long collaborated closely with the Russian-Armenian oligarch Ruben Vardanyan, who is currently in a Baku detention centre, preparing for trial and facing accusations of supporting terrorism.

As is well known, Vardanyan moved to Khankendi in violation of Azerbaijani law. Afeyan was wise enough to support Ruben Karlenovich's ventures from a distance, without moving to Azerbaijan's territories that were temporarily occupied by Armenia. Yet now, he is actively calling for Vardanyan's release. Recently, he even participated in a joint prayer at St. Anne’s Church for the return of all Armenian war criminals, including Ruben Vardanyan, to their homeland.

It is evident that Afeyan is the main financier behind those who seek to defame Azerbaijan. For example, Musimbi Kanyoro, the President of the UWC International Board, made a truly shocking statement during the 10th anniversary ceremony of UWC Dilijan International School. "When I think about one of our own founders, Ruben Vardanyan, I look to Nelson Mandela's life," she declared. In addition to Vardanyan, Afeyan is also a founder of UWC Dilijan.

Vardanyan is also the one motivating former International Criminal Court prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo, who is actively participating in the events celebrating UWC Dilijan’s 10th anniversary. Ocampo has once again called for Vardanyan's release and regularly states that COP29 in Baku should be used as an opportunity to increase pressure on Azerbaijan.

The pieces of the puzzle have come together. Yerevan, along with various figures backed by wealthy members of the Armenian diaspora, have joined forces in an attempt to pressure Azerbaijan ahead of COP29. However, these efforts are clearly in vain. Baku will remember everything. Major international events always leave lasting impressions, shaped by the actions of everyone involved.

Armenia is once again repeating the mistakes that led to the 44-day war, which resulted in a series of military and political failures for Yerevan. Take, for example, the campaign it launched last July and August over the alleged blockade of Karabakh—how did that end? This series of missteps seems likely to continue. And for whatever consequences follow, Nikol Pashinyan will have no one to blame but himself. Azerbaijan is watching closely and will remember it all.