ASPA tries to undermine OSCE PA's fair position on Azerbaijan

PACE is trying to undermine OSCE PA's fair and objective position on Azerbaijan, MP Azay Guliyev, Chairman of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly's General Committee on Economic Affairs, Science, Technology and Environment, told Report while commenting on the bureau meeting held in Malta.

The deputy noted that no country's elections have been discussed twice in the relevant structures of the OSCE PA:

"As you know, the heads of delegations from Scandinavian and Baltic countries - Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Estonia, and Lithuania - sent an official letter to the organization's president Pia Kauma. They demanded the inclusion of Azerbaijan's parliamentary elections on the bureau meeting's agenda, and therefore the issue was brought up for discussion.

Though the elections in Azerbaijan were discussed in the Standing Committee on October 2 and three months have passed since the elections, this issue was included in the agenda of the Bureau meeting. Some of the letter's signatories, who are also represented in PACE, wanted to use the OSCE PA as a tool in PACE's dirty tricks."

"It's known that 76 deputies from 26 PACE countries who voted against confirming the Azerbaijani delegation's mandate in January this year were justifiably declared persona non grata and banned from entering Azerbaijan.

Report/ Firi salim

The delegation heads from the countries mentioned in the letter were trying to justify this infamous decision made against Azerbaijan. They wanted the OSCE PA to call for unilateral changes regarding the 'unwanted' deputies without considering Azerbaijan's interests and conditions, and to show solidarity with PACE. In their letter, they didn't forget to criticize Türkiye as well," he noted.

According to Guliyev, this is not the first attempt by PACE to undermine OSCE PA's fair and objective position regarding Azerbaijan and to make this organization complicit in its wrong policy:

"Due to its biased position, PACE, which was not invited to observe both elections held in Azerbaijan this year, resorted to dirty methods, including blackmail, to persuade OSCE PA to refuse to send observers to the elections and show solidarity with them, but achieved nothing.

This time too, their 'PACE game' against Azerbaijan failed, and the OSCE PA Bureau rejected the issue raised by delegations from seven countries."

The committee chairman did not completely rule out that these individuals might put forward new anti-Azerbaijan initiatives in upcoming sessions:

"Relevant discussions were held with the OSCE PA president, several bureau members, and the secretary-general. Azerbaijan's justified position was noted, namely the impossibility of changing the known decision until our delegation's mandate is confirmed.

Most importantly, after bringing to my colleagues' attention the inadmissibility of using OSCE PA as a tool for PACE's mistakes and double standards, the bureau refused to consider the issue raised in the letter. However, it cannot be ruled out that this issue might be raised again in future bureau meetings."