As NGOs from Azerbaijan, we vehemently
condemn the attacks and acts of vandalism committed against the premises of
Azerbaijan's diplomatic missions abroad by the radicals of the Armenian
diaspora in the countries such as France, Lebanon. These attacks, containing
the elements of terrorism, are aimed at causing harm to diplomats and their
property, and are considered crimes that give rise to international criminal
responsibility. We would like to draw attention to the fact that the "1961
Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations,” an international agreement
outlining the status and functions of diplomatic missions, "The receiving State
is under a special duty to take all appropriate steps to protect the premises
of the mission against any intrusion or damage and to prevent any disturbance
of the peace of the mission or impairment of its dignity”. We regret to inform
you that the response to the attacks against the Azerbaijani embassies is not
satisfactory. Even though it has been a few days since the incidents, the
institutions in charge of stopping provocations have not yet issued enough
statements or dealt any punishment with the perpetrators.
We, as Azerbaijani NGOs, strongly condemn
the criminal acts of radical Armenian groups and expect the institutions of
respective countries responsible for preventing such provocations to treat
their duties responsibly. Guided by the principle of the rule of law, we demand
that the acts of vandalism committed by radical Armenian forces be investigated
by the law enforcement agencies of the respective states and a legal assessment
be given to the actions of the perpetrators of these crimes.
As representatives of the Azerbaijani
civil society, we believe that these countries should accept the responsibility
of the attack on Azerbaijani embassies as a state, understand the concerns of
the Azerbaijani people, seriously investigate the incident, organize the
finding and punishment of those responsible, and inform the government and
people of Azerbaijan about the results.
We also appeal to representatives of NGOs
and mass media in the countries where armenian communities organized attacks on
Azerbaijani embassies, and call them to be sensitive to the processes and not
to be indifferent to what is happening. If the crime goes unpunished, it might
be committed again in other places in other forms.
September 20, 2022, Baku
