Paris voices support to Baku on Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

/By AzerNews/

By Sara Rajabova

France’s newly-appointed ambassador to Azerbaijan has vowed her country’s support to Baku on the Nagorno-Karabakh issue.

“France’s position on the Nagorno-Karabakh issue is extremely clear: France supports Azerbaijan, and doesn’t recognize the so-called “Nagorno-Karabakh Republic”,” said Aurelia Bouchez.

Bouchez made the remark on November 19, while commenting on the 16th European telethon, held by the French office of the Hayastan All-Armenian Fund.

All the funds collected during the telethon, held under patronage of Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, will be used to construct community centers in the Armenia-occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, according to media reports.

Although the mayor of Paris is realizing this project, it doesn’t reflect the position of France, Bouchez said, adding that there is no reason to talk about double standards.

France is one of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries, which has been tasked to mediate between Armenia and Azerbaijan for the peaceful resolution of the long-standing Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Armenia occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions, after laying territorial claims against its South Caucasus neighbor that caused a brutal war in the early 1990s.

Long-standing efforts by U.S., Russian and French mediators have so far been largely fruitless.

Bouchez further spoke about the French-Azerbaijani ties, noting that relations between Paris and Baku are developing in all areas, including economy and education.

Praising the development of the two countries’ bilateral relations, the ambassador said the importance of further stepping up these relations was highlighted during her meeting with President Ilham Aliyev.

“I am sure there are other areas that we will develop,” said the ambassador, noting that economy is a very important area, as it creates new jobs.

Bouchez said she will try to implement all the projects conceived during the last visit of French President Francois Hollande to Baku.

She voiced satisfaction that 40 French companies are already successfully operating in Azerbaijan.

Bouchez further noted that before being appointed as the ambassador to Baku, she headed the EU’s representation in Kazakhstan, and so she knows the Caspian region very well.

“I am very happy to be in Caucasus, in Azerbaijan, and to continue my work here. Azerbaijan is the first partner of France in the Caucasus. Our economic cooperation is very diverse. There is also possibility to develop relations in agriculture, transportation and tourism,” she said.

Touching upon the cooperation in education, the ambassador said the French Lyceum in Baku has been operating for only two years, but there are many who want to study there.

“We also see that the French language is in great demand in Azerbaijan, it is studied by 80,000 people,” the diplomat said.

Bouchez also thanked the Azerbaijani government and people for supporting her country after the November 13 terror attacks in Paris.

She said France is trying by all means to protect the people in Paris and the surrounding areas from terror attacks, noting that a three-month state of emergency has been declared there.

“France is trying to ensure security, but no one can guarantee absolute safety. This time, the terrorists’ target was France, the next time it can be another country,” Bouchez noted.

Noting that the entire civilized world is under threat, she called for unity on this matter.

France recognized Azerbaijan's independence on January 3, 1992. Azerbaijan and France established diplomatic relations in February 1992.

Azerbaijan and France are actively developing their relations. The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and France amounted to $1.681 billion in 2014.

French companies are actively participating in the petrochemical, food, agricultural, machine engineering, tourism and other spheres in Azerbaijan.

A number of companies from France are involved in the oil and gas projects in Azerbaijan as subcontractors. At the same time, over 50 French companies are involved in the non-oil sectors' projects, including the first Azerbaijani telecommunications satellite Azerspace, and a plant for solid waste recycling.