Azerbaijan is not only violating the trilateral Joint Statement, it is also violating several major international conventions, Portugal’s delegate to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe Paulo Pisco said at the current-affairs debate on Armenian prisoners of war and other captives.
“Maybe our colleagues from Azerbaijan may not like that we are holding this discussion on Armenian prisoners of war today, but it is here in this forum for peace and human rights that we should discuss and insist that until all Armenian prisoners of war, military and civilian, are released, and all other questions related to this issue are fairly solved,” Mr. Pisco said.
He stressed that Azerbaijan is not fulfilling its part of the agreement established in the joint statement signed by Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia to put an end to war.
“Paragraph 8 of this statement is very clear on the compromise assumed by both parts to exchange all prisoners of war, hostages and other detained persons including the carried out dead bodies. Armenia accomplished its part of the agreement in releasing all prisoners. Azerbaijan, after all this time, is remaining silent,” the lawmaker said.
“Azerbaijan is not only violating the referred Joint Statement, it is also violating several major international conventions. I only refer to the Geneva Convention that provides a wide range of protection for prisoners of war and the international humanitarian in law,” he added.
“It is of major importance that Azerbaijan delivers all relevant information concerning the number of prisoners and their health conditions. There are justified concerns that they were being submitted to inhumane and degrading treatment, including the use of torture as several humanitarian organizations have denounced,” Mr. Pisco stated.
“It is our duty and our mission in the Council of Europe to do everything we can to promote dialogue and help to restore peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan, demanding full respect for international law and humanitarian principles. We must appeal therefore to the goodwill and to the good faith of Azerbaijan to accomplish their objectives,” he concluded.
