During the plenary session of the winter session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), the Assembly adopted the report of the PACE Monitoring Commission. The document refers to the period from January to December 2022. The paper presents the situation in the member states, including RA and Azerbaijan. A separate section is devoted to military operations between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The military operations during that period are described, including meetings between the leaders of the two sides mediated by the EU and other actors.
However, this document cannot find a specific record of which side started the attack. There also needs to be a record in this document regarding the blockade of the Lachine Corridor. However, the closure of the Lachine Corridor occurred during which the Monitoring Commission prepared its report. In this report, in the section related to Armenia, it is stated: “The Assembly welcomes the significant progress in the democratic development of Armenia and calls on the authorities to complete the reform of the electoral field, continue the reforms of the judicial system and strengthen the freedom of the press. The Assembly will continue to closely monitor the developments related to establishing institutional balance and democratic culture in Armenia.”
In the report, there is concern about Azerbaijan that the situation in this country has not improved. In particular, it is stipulated: “The Assembly welcomes the commitment of the Azerbaijani authorities to political dialogue but regrets that the overall situation in Azerbaijan has not improved and that several concerns regarding the rule of law, pluralistic democracy, and human rights remain.
These include severe concerns about the independence of the judiciary, freedom of the media and freedom of expression, freedom of association and political freedom, as well as issues of torture and ill-treatment by law enforcement officers and inadequate conditions in detention facilities.”
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Tatev Harutyunyan
Strasbourg
