BARONESS COX REVEALS BAKU'S TRUE FACE DURING DEBATE ON UK-AZERI TI

[Yervant1]

BARONESS COX REVEALS BAKU'S TRUE FACE DURING DEBATE ON UK-AZERI TIES

 

 

PanARMENIAN.Net - Member of the UK House of Lords, chair of the

British-Armenian All-Party Parliamentary Group Baroness Caroline Cox

delivered remarks during a debate on UK's relations with Azerbaijan

and the South Caucasus.

 

"I have visited the region 78 times, many during the war against

Nagorno Karabakh. I regret that my contribution to this debate will

be unpopular, because it is critical of Azerbaijan, but it is based

on first-hand evidence," Baroness Cox said.

 

"I begin with a brief reference to aspects of recent history relevant

to current issues. I visited Azerbaijan in 1991, when I met the

then president and political leaders. I was dismayed by the explicit

commitment to ethnic cleansing of the Armenians from Nagorno Karabakh.

 

I also visited Karabakh then and met Azeris living in homes which had

recently been owned by Armenians who had been evicted by Azerbaijan's

well documented policy, Operation Ring, in which Armenian villagers

were surrounded by Azeri troops who killed, tortured and drove

villagers off their land," she continued.

 

"The Armenians were the primary victims as they had already been

victims in the massacres in Baku and Sumgait. Then Azerbaijan unleashed

full-scale war. I witnessed 400 Grad missiles daily raining onto

Karabakh's capital city, an aerial bombardment of civilian homes

with 500 kilogram bombs. I also witnessed war crimes perpetrated by

Azerbaijan on Armenian civilians at Karabakh, such as the cold-blooded

massacre of villagers in Maragha. I was there hours afterwards and saw

corpses whose heads had been sawn off and burnt, mutilated bodies. I

visited Khojaly and can testify that the tragic events were not as

portrayed by Azerbaijan-a massacre of Azeris by Armenians. Independent

journalists and Azerbaijan's former President Mutalibov have publicly

come to the same conclusion," Baroness Cox emphasized.

 

She also noted that the Armenian forces' taking control over the

territories surrounding Nagorno Karabakh was not aggressive land

grabbing, but essential for survival, as they were used as bases for

constant shelling of towns and villages inside Karabakh. "I was there

when one ceasefire was broken by Azerbaijan, with renewed bombing

from Azeri bases in these lands," she said.

 

"This recent history is relevant to current concerns as the 1994

ceasefire is precarious. There is an urgent need for peace for the

peoples of Azerbaijan and Armenia and because the peoples of the south

Caucasus do not want another destabilizing regional war. However,

Azerbaijan's continuing hostile policies are detrimental to attempts

to reach a solution to this semi-frozen conflict. For example, the

noble Lord, Lord Laird, mentioned the case of Ramil Safarov, the Azeri

military officer who used an axe to murder an Armenian officer in his

sleep while both men were attending a NATO course in Budapest in 2004.

 

Safarov was arrested, convicted and sentenced to a lengthy term of

imprisonment. But, when Hungary repatriated Safarov to Azerbaijan, on

the understanding that he would continue to serve his prison sentence,

he was released from prison and welcomed as a hero. According to the

Economist in September 2012, this led to a new war of words in one

of the world's most volatile regions," she said.

 

"Patrick Ventrell, spokesman for the US State Department, said that

the United States was extremely troubled by the pardon of Safarov and

would be seeking an explanation from both Budapest and Baku. Russia,

involved in trying to ease relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan,

said that the actions of the Hungarian and Azeri Governments

contradicted internationally brokered efforts to bring peace to the

region. May I ask the Minister what representations have been made

by Her Majesty's Government to Azerbaijan concerning the release and

the honouring of the convicted murderer Safarov?

 

The Economist also raised questions about the EU's credibility when

it pledged ~@19.5 million to reform oil-rich Azerbaijan's justice

and migration systems. Since 2006, Azerbaijan's economy, with its

vast oil and gas reserves, has nearly tripled to $62 billion. May I

ask the Minister what the EU's justification was in giving ~@19.5

million to such a wealthy country? Moreover, there is widely-held

concern over Azerbaijan's massive investment in its military arsenal-a

20-fold increase in seven years. Apart from expenditure on arms,

in a nation where many still live in poverty, there is deep anxiety

over the propensity to renew war with Nagorno-Karabakh. This danger

is exacerbated by Azerbaijan's constant use of belligerent and hostile

propaganda, which is not conducive to confidence-building or effective

peace negotiations," the Baroness noted.

 

Finally Baroness Caroline Cox referred to Azerbaijan's disturbing

record on human rights, particularly on freedom of the press and

religious freedom.

 

"No country has an interest in other countries, only interests-and

we have oil interests in Azerbaijan," she concluded.

 

"Azerbaijan pours massive funds into propaganda, disseminating

positive images of its progress while trying to prevent access to

Karabakh by intimidating potential visitors who wish to see the

situation there for themselves. After one of my visits in recent

years, an article appeared in an Azeri newspaper, entitled "Shoot

the Cox!". Parliamentarians visiting Armenia receive letters from

Azeri authorities threatening to place them on a blacklist if they

visit Karabakh. The British Ambassador is still not allowed to visit

Karabakh, although the political and diplomatic representatives

of other nations do so. Therefore, it is hard for the Armenians of

Karabakh to have their story of Azerbaijan's policies told.

 

I deeply regret having had to make such a critical speech. Of course,

I can be accused of partiality, but if my contribution is partial,

it is accurate, based on first-hand evidence and corroborated by

many independent sources. I hope it is helpful to put on record some

often untold aspects of the situation, because the search for a just

and lasting peace can only be based on an understanding of historic

and contemporary reality in all its multi-faceted complexity,"

she stressed.

[onjig]

God bless her! She has never lost interest, stays true and focused. She keeps us in her heart.

[Yervant1]

18:49 26/09/2013 » Society

Caroline Cox awarded Mesrop Mashtots order

On September 26, Artsakh Republic President Bako Sahakyan signed a decree conferring Mesrop Mashtots order on member of the House of Lords, Baroness Caroline Cox for her services to Artsakh and its people, reported the Central Information Department at the Artsakh President’s Office.

 

Source: Panorama.am

[onjig]

They are still showing pictures of the Armenian dead, saying they are azeri. I just watched a video with this turn around lie.

 

They are not just evil but accomplished inventive liars.

Edited October 2, 2013 by onjig