Baku Advises the US Not to Fuel Anti-Azerbaijani Campaigns

The State Committee for Work with Religious Structures of Azerbaijan has labeled the 2023 report on religious freedoms from the United States as biased and false, which has resulted in Baku being included in the State Department's special monitoring list. This was reported by RIA Novosti, referencing a statement published on the committee's website.

"The inclusion of our country by the US Department of State in the group of countries without international status, based on alleged violations of religious freedom in Azerbaijan, is nothing more than a tool of political manipulation. The 'shortcomings' presented by the US Commission on International Religious Freedom do not reflect the realities of our country and are entirely contrary to the truth. Many points in the aforementioned reports of the commission are unexamined, they refer to pro-Armenian sources, and at times deliberately provide erroneous interpretations of events," the statement reads.

The committee believes that these incorrect interpretations "seriously undermine the objectivity of the reports," which do not correspond at all to the goals and objectives set during their preparation.

The agency has identified certain 'pro-Armenian forces' behind the US decision, claiming that they are allegedly conducting a smear campaign against Azerbaijan, and advised the State Department to "not pour water into their mill."

"We advise the State Department not to fuel the mill of pro-Armenian forces conducting a smear campaign against Azerbaijan, to refrain from a policy of double standards, and to take steps in accordance with international law norms based on the new realities in the region," the statement concludes.