Paul Gavan (Ireland, UEL) will visit Azerbaijan on behalf of the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) from 26 to 28 July 2021, to gather information for his report on “The humanitarian consequences of the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan”.
He will hold meetings with parliamentarians, including the Speaker of the National Assembly (Milli Mejlis), and with representatives of different ministries dealing with the humanitarian consequences of the conflict. He will also have an opportunity to hear from displaced persons, and will meet with the Commissioner for Human Rights of Azerbaijan and civil society representatives.
The visit will also allow him to understand better the role and contribution of international organisations working on this issue in Azerbaijan, including the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). He already visited Armenia in the context of the preparation of this report in May 2021.
Mr Gavan plans to continue his work over the summer and aims to complete his report in September.