US journalist removed from “black list” of Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry

Paul Salopek, an employee of the National Geographic and a US citizen, requested Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry to remove his name from the list of undesirable persons, the head of the ministry’s press service, Hikmet Hajiyev told Trend Sept. 4.

Salopek was included to the ministry’s list of undesirable persons for illegally visiting Azerbaijani territories occupied by Armenia.

In a letter sent to the Foreign Ministry, the journalist expressed regret over the illegal visit and stressed that he respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan.

Salopek also said his visit in no way served a purpose of recognizing the regime created in Azerbaijan’s occupied territories, and apologized to the people of Azerbaijan.

After the review of the request, Paul Salopek was removed from the list of undesirable persons.

The journalist was also granted permission to visit Azerbaijan as part of a project titled “Out of Eden Walk” to study the routes of ancient peoples.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.

/By Trend/