Mayors of Paris, Lyon and Marseille Demand Sanctions Against Azerbaijan

The mayors of France's three largest cities, Paris, Lyon, and Marseille, have published a joint call in the "Liberation" newspaper, urging for sanctions to be imposed on Azerbaijan in light of its blockade of the Lachin corridor. Below is the Armenian translation of the article published by the Embassy of Armenia in France:

URGENT SANCTIONS AGAINST AZERBAIJAN

The Republic of Artsakh, predominantly inhabited by Armenians, has fallen victim to the blockade orchestrated by Baku’s regime, which is gradually suffocating it. The mayors of Paris, Lyon, and Marseille request that France and the European Union respond as quickly as possible with concrete actions in support of Artsakh.

Azerbaijan's warlike policy against the Republic of Artsakh intensified on December 12 when the only road connecting Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia was blocked by official Baku. Additionally, until last Friday, Azerbaijan had also shut down the gas supply to Nagorno-Karabakh, clearly demonstrating its intent to suffocate this besieged small republic in the South Caucasus. However, the consolidation of Western governments, particularly the stance of the French government, prompted Baku to resume gas supplies, thus fortunately avoiding a deterioration of the situation on the eve of a cold winter.

Nevertheless, the situation remains unacceptable, and France cannot tolerate the continuous threat facing the 120,000 Armenians living in the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh (whose territories have been partially occupied by Azerbaijan). France cannot leave them at the mercy of the tyrant Ilham Aliyev, who has encouraged anti-Armenian policies for two decades.

The French Senate and subsequently the National Assembly recently called on the French government to adopt structural measures. In this context, we urge the President of France to officially meet with the elected representatives of the Republic of Artsakh.

Simultaneously, we call for the unconditional condemnation of the Baku regime, which, through its Foreign Minister, declared that Azerbaijan would no longer negotiate on the Nagorno-Karabakh issue, in violation of its own international obligations, particularly those undertaken on November 9, 2020.

We also request the initiation of a European policy of sanctions against Azerbaijan, similar to the measures adopted against Russia, starting with the freezing of assets held in our country by Azerbaijani leaders and oligarchs.

Since this regime no longer wishes to negotiate, we request that France adopt a transparent stance on Nagorno-Karabakh, particularly within the framework of decentralized cooperation, so that our regions, departments, and cities can mobilize human, financial, and material resources to assist Artsakh in restoring the many infrastructures damaged from ongoing conflicts.

We also ask that France participate in the reoperation of the Stepanakert airport; this air bridge would help alleviate the consequences of the blockade and ease the lives of thousands of peaceful residents, whose only fault is the desire to live on their own land.

Firmly convinced that French diplomacy must play a significant role, we call upon the President of France and the Foreign Minister to continue their efforts, coordinating them with our partners, to establish lasting peace in the region and to ensure the application of the right of nations to self-determination, in accordance with international law.

Finally, we request that our country and the European Union demonstrate great foresight when concluding cooperation and trade agreements with Azerbaijan. Ursula von der Leyen's initiative to obtain gas supplies from Baku, rather than sourcing supplies through Russia, concerns us greatly. We are alarmed that the funding of the conflict against the Republic of Artsakh may not be condemned and may not meet strong opposition from our leaders, making it so that the peaceful victims of armed conflicts, in this case Armenians, as well as Ukrainians or Yemenis elsewhere, are sacrificed on the altar of realpolitik.