Armenian analysts criticize PACE’s resolution

The resolution of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) is biased, since the authors of the document have missed a number of important points, the participants in the Yerevan discussion have stated.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that the PACE adopted a resolution, in which it demanded from Azerbaijan to release all the Armenian prisoners of war (POWs), and called on both parties to investigate war crimes and start a dialogue.

In many of its provisions, the PACE's resolution is maintaining a proper balance, while the most important question – who had unleashed the autumn war in Nagorno-Karabakh – remains open, David Amiryan, a deputy director of the "Open Society-Armenia Fund" programmes, stated on September 29 during a discussion in Yerevan. He believes that when drafting the resolution, the authors could have referred, in particular, to the report of Freedom House, which indicates who had started the war.

There are numerous proofs of the involvement of Syrian mercenaries with the assistance of Turkey, but even here the authors put an equal sign, while ethnic Armenians fought on the side of Nagorno-Karabakh, Mr Amiryan has added.

Siranush Saakyan, an advocate, who is representing the interests of Armenian POWs at the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), has also noted that the resolution fails to provide an objective coverage of the conflict. In her opinion, this is precisely why appeals to the ECtHR are an important component. "The judiciary is more independent of political preferences. And it is no coincidence that the ECtHR has informed the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe that Azerbaijan is not fulfilling its obligations before the ECtHR. Already in about ten cases, the ECtHR has issued decisions stating that Azerbaijan is guilty of ethnically-based crimes," Ms Saakyan has concluded.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on at 05:20 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.