PACE summer session kicks off in Strasbourg: Azerbaijan seeks to deprive Armenia of voting rights

The summer session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe kicked off in Strasbourg today. The Azerbaijani side has submitted a motion, urging to apply sanctions against Armenia, member of the Armenian delegation to PACE Naira Zohrabyan told Public Radio of Armenia. She said that with the bill Azerbaijan aims to deprive the Armenian delegation of the right to vote.

“This is not the first time Azerbaijan comes forth with absurd initiatives on different podiums,” the MP said. “Unfortunately, they have managed to collect signatures of 58 lawmakers, but when we look at the list of those MPs, we see they are the famous Azerbaijani lobbyists, who get their pay from Azerbaijan at every session,” Naira Zohrabyan added.

She is confident, however, that  “the Assembly has not lost its soberness and rational logic” and hopes that PACE will not take this initiative seriously. Naira Zohrabyan believes the scenario of depriving Armenians of the right to vote is “absolutely unrealistic.”

At a press conference in Strasbourg PACE President Anne Brasseur referred to the motion submitted by Azerbaijan. “This motion has not been tabled according to rules, because the author has not challenged the credentials. The issue will be on the agenda of the meeting of the Bureau on Friday,” she said.