Karabakh Rejects Council of Europe Report That Is ‘Lacking in Value,’ Says Presidential Spokesman

David Babayan, Spokesman for the President of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (Source: Public Radio of Armenia)

STEPANAKERT (News.am)—Davit Babayan, spokesman for the president of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, has said that a report authored by British parliament member for the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) Robert Walter, is lacking in any value and will “collect dust in [an] archive,” according to News.am.

The report, titled “Escalation of Violence in Nagorno-Karabakh and the other occupied territories of Azerbaijan,” is unacceptable, according to Babayan.

According to Babayan, Karabakh is interested in PACE and other European or other institutions that are preparing objective, impartial documents that reflect the reality of the situation in Artsakh.

“We have actually expressed readiness to contribute to this process. We also tried to support Robert Walter with our messages: we made it clear to him that a report with such content and title cannot be acceptable. We gave him time to change the title, content and philosophy of the report,” Babayan said.

However, nothing was done, he said. “So, it’s clear that the report is merely a political order written in Azerbaijan—either in the President’s residence or in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Why should he visit the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic? Let him go to Baku, have meetings there, try their tea and caviar and then prepare the report. I think our stance was just, democratic and civilized, since we repeatedly gave Walter the chance to review the report. He didn’t do that, and here is the ensuing corresponding treatment,” said Babayan.

According to Babayan, the report will not be fully valid since everyone knows that it was written by the order of Azerbaijan. “Apparently, the Armenian delegation won’t vote in favor of that report. I’m more than sure that a number of other states will either not vote [for it] or abstain,” he said.

On October 1, 2014, PACE’s Political Affairs Committee instructed MP Robert Walter—who is known for his pro-Azerbaijani stance—to prepare a report on Nagorno-Karabakh. The title of the report however—“Escalation of Violence in Nagorno-Karabakh and the other occupied territories of Azerbaijan”—sparked debate and received harsh criticism. On September 15-16, Walter visited the line of contact from the Azerbaijani side.

Walter is expected to present the report to PACE in early November.