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Elnur Enveroglu

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The European Parliament (EP) is preparing to pass a slanderous, biased, and non-objective anti-Azerbaijani resolution. The document, believed to be ratified in the next few days, once again proves the hostility of the EU Parliament against Azerbaijan.

It is awkward that the initial draft motion of the biased resolution cynically mentions allegations, such as Azerbaijan's alleged military aggression against Armenia, the alleged 'blockade' of the Lachin road, as well as the 'Minsk Group', 'a status', 'in and around Nagorno-Karabakh', official Baku has repeatedly said was thrown into the dustbin of history.

Commenting on this preposterous resolution, Neil Watson, the British journalist, said those who are debating the adoption of the resolution are all predisposed to the conflict from an Armenophile perspective, either to attract favor from members of the Armenian diaspora in their home countries, particularly, in the case of MEP Natalie Loiseau of France or because they come from a fundamentalist Christian perspective, representing the beliefs of a Christian electorate at home.

In an interview with Azernews, the journalist said that the newly-proposed resolution does not currently reflect the official policy of the EU.

“As I mentioned earlier, it should first be understood that this is a Joint Motion for a Resolution, and will be debated for adoption this week. All the supporting MEPs are from the S&D, Renew, Verts/ALE, ECR, and Left Groups.”

Giving some more details about the reason behind, why the EU Parliament is trying to undermine relations of Azerbaijan with the EU despite the mutual interests in the supply of energy, the British pundit explained that the EU Parliament behaves spitefully towards Azerbaijan because of two main factors: religion and lobbying.

“In my view, the basis of this inherently pro-Armenian perspective is partly religious, as the EU comprises Christian countries, and they consider Armenia to be a bastion of Christianity amidst a sea of Islam, overlooking the reality of Azerbaijani religious tolerance; it is to placate electorates in their home countries and also because they, with the waning role of Russia in the region, consider that Armenia will be easier to manipulate and transform into an outpost of the EU in the South Caucasus. It is also due to the success of Armenian propaganda and the successful integration of Armenians into society across Europe. Paradoxically, the issue of the Russian ‘peacekeepers’ and their proposed replacement with an OSCE contingent under the aegis of the UN is only mentioned in relation to Armenia, inferring that Azerbaijan is an ally of Russia and not Armenia, whereas the reverse is the case.”

Having mentioned the EU-Azerbaijan economic relations, Neil Watson says this interest lasts to a certain extent, where it ends up at the peak of its pro-Armenian adherence.

“According to the official description of EU-Azerbaijani relations, the main basis of collaboration is as an ‘important energy supplier to the EU’. Naturally, its inherently pro-Armenian perspective undermines this, to some extent, but it is in the interests of both sides to continue this collaboration. Azerbaijan needs new markets for its gas and, given the Russo-Ukrainian conflict, South East Europe needs this energy more than ever.”

The pundit also touched on the poor role of Azerbaijan in lobbyism activities at the EU Parliament and elsewhere. He said Armenian lobbyism relatively prevails in the western world, in which we see how European policymakers pamper a handful of Armenian separatists abroad.

“On a political level, Azerbaijan still needs to win the peace. The vast majority of MEPs only know the Armenian narrative. They need to understand the legal basis and background of the Karabakh conflict, they need to comprehend Armenian war crimes against Azerbaijan, and they need to know that the enemies of the EU are the enemies and neighbors of Azerbaijan - Russia, and Iran. A great deal of education and lobbying has to be done on behalf of Azerbaijan. More MEPs need to be supportive and vocal on its behalf, not solely concentrating on hydrocarbons, but emphasizing its stability, tolerance, and affiliation with the west.”

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Elnur Enveroglu is AzerNews’ deputy editor-in-chief, follow him on @ElnurMammadli1

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