European Parliament Calls for Sanctions Against Azerbaijan

Members of the European Parliament David McAllister, Marina Kaljurand, Andrey Kovachev, and Željana Zovko have strongly condemned Azerbaijan's actions against Nagorno-Karabakh in a joint statement. They called on the EU Council to radically reconsider EU-Azerbaijan relations and to consider applying sanctions against the Azerbaijani authorities if the attacks do not cease immediately.

“This premeditated attack is absolutely unacceptable. We urge an immediate halt to all military operations. Direct negotiations between Baku and Stepanakert are the only option for progress in the relationship between the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan. The EU has always been ready to support this process,” the statement said.

The MEPs noted that the attack by Baku seriously undermines the peace process between Azerbaijan and Armenia. They urged the President of Azerbaijan to take into account the recent calls from the Prime Minister of Armenia to resume negotiations at the highest level.

“We remind that the attack occurs against the backdrop of a humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh. Such a humanitarian situation has arisen because Azerbaijan has blocked the Lachin corridor, violating the commitments it made in the November 9 statement and the binding orders of the International Court of Justice. Humanitarian access to Nagorno-Karabakh must be fully and permanently restored. We are concerned about the potential impact of Azerbaijan's actions on the civilian population and call on Azerbaijan to refrain from using military escalation as a pretext and not to force the local population to emigrate,” the statement concluded.