Head of Azerbaijani delegation returning from Armenia: “There is no development in Yerevan”

Baku. 30 November. REPORT.AZ/ " I have seen that there is no development in the capital of Armenia, Yerevan.

"I have been in Yerevan 5-6 times, and the situation has not changed. Hotels, offices for government and organizations have been built in the city, and some of them are not ready.Living standards are also not high. I paid attention to everything and even the clothes were not modern," said head of the Azerbaijani delegation Eldar Guliyev, who attended the 52nd session of the General Assembly of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (PABSEC) in Yerevan, Armenia.

He noted that the Azerbaijani delegation was guarded at a high level: "Even when we went to wash our hands, our security guarded us. We understood that it's the way it has to be. We didn’t have a special contact with Armenians. On the evening of the meeting day, they also hosted a banquet for the members of the Assembly. We were together with the Turkish delegation, and also returned with them."

The head of the delegation also touched upon refusal of the jubilee medal: ”I told them beforehand that we would not take a jubilee medal. They even told me that the medal belongs to the organization and has nothing to do with Armenia. I also said I knew, but I didn’t want to take this medal from the Armenian speaker. Why should I take a medal with his signature? Before the meeting, we were asked not to politicize it. At first I wanted to say that Armenia occupied 20% of Azerbaijan's territory, and as a result, our country has over one million refugees and internally displaced people, so how can I get this medal? I said that I have been elected a member of the Azerbaijani parliament four times, but I can not get this medal, because I have no international experience. That is, I am not ready to receive this high award.

Before me a member of the Georgian delegation began to speak, and he also refused to take the medal. After the Azerbaijani delegation, the head of the Turkish delegation Cemil Öztürk made a speech.He said that his representation in this international organization is new, so he didn’t want to get the medal. Ukraine also refused to get the medal. Actually, the four delegates did not receive a medal, and they were both astonished and shocked, looking at each other. The Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia also attended the meeting.Therefore, the speaker presented medal to the delegations of 8 other countries. There were no conflicts at the plenary and committee meetings.

Guliyev said said that he did not made tour around the city: "We did not take a trip to the city during our stay because there was a certain program. The program included the visit to the so-called 'Armenian genocide' monument and historical museums. Why should we visit there? Do they have a history? Everything has been fabricated. Only member of the delegation Aflatun Amashov and Secretary General of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization Asaf Hajiyev visited the Blue Mosque in Yerevan. In fact, I advised Amashov not to go. Because the mosque is headed by an Armenian. Just imagine that the head of the mosque is Armenian.“

The MP reminded that the chairmanship of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation has been given to Azerbaijan: "Azerbaijani Parliament Speaker Ogtay Asadov will chair the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization for 6 months."