Turan Information Agency, Azerbaijani Opposition Press
 Monday


Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry condemns visit of the mayor of
Saint-Etienne to Karabakh



Baku/22.10.18/Turan: The Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan strongly
condemned the visit of Gael Perdrio, the mayor of the French city of
Saint Etienne to the city of Shusha occupied by Armenians in
Nagorno-Karabakh.

According to the press service of the Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan,
this step of the local government of France is in flagrant violation
of the norms and principles of international law and the laws of
Azerbaijan, as well as the national legislation of France. All this
serves to encourage the separatist regime created in the territories
of Azerbaijan occupied by Armenia. During this visit, the mayor of
Saint Etienne is accompanied by the well-known lobbyist of Armenian
interests, Francois Roshbulan.

The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry recalls that the French Foreign
Minister stated in a statement dated May 24, 2018 that local
governments in France are prohibited from entering into any agreements
with separatist structures of unrecognized territories and carrying
out visits there, holding joint events. In this regard, the Foreign
Ministry of Azerbaijan indicated that the Declaration of Friendship,
signed during the visit, has no legal force.

Such illegal actions of local governments of France damage the
authority of this country, as a mediator in the settlement of the
Karabakh conflict and the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group to resolve
the problem peacefully. The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry calls on the
French government to take measures to prevent illegal actions on the
part of local governments of this country.

The mayor of Saint Etienne, Perdrio, will be included in the list of
undesirable persons by the Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan, as having
violated the laws of Azerbaijan and visited the occupied
Nagorno-Karabakh region. -06D-