What Happened Crossed a Red Line: Aliyev

Baku will lift the entry ban for certain members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) following the restoration of Azerbaijan's delegation's powers in PACE. This was announced by the President of the Republic, Ilham Aliyev, during a speech at an international conference held in Chernobyl, Italy.

“What happened in January of this year (when PACE did not extend Azerbaijan's delegation's powers) crossed a red line. Last year, we fully restored our sovereignty. Just a few months later, PACE decided to deprive our delegation of its voting rights. That is, sanctions were imposed on us because we restored our own sovereignty,” he stated.

According to him, the decision against PACE members who voted against the validation of the Azerbaijani delegation's powers is “equivalent.”

“Our decision was a response. If they change their decision and restore our rights, then this so-called embargo will be lifted. Our delegation should return, and then the ban will be lifted,” the head of state added.

It is noteworthy that on January 24, the country's delegation suspended its work in PACE in protest against attempts to challenge its powers. This move came against the backdrop of PACE's decision not to validate the country's delegation's powers during its winter session. The basis for this decision was that Azerbaijan did not invite organization representatives to observe the early presidential elections scheduled for February 7. Additionally, Baku has been accused of persecuting the opposition and violating the rights of the Armenian population in Nagorno-Karabakh.