European Parliament Condemned Destruction of Armenian Khachkars in NakhichevanFebruary 17, 2006 - 13:20 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The European Parliament yesterday overwhelmingly adopted a resolution condemning the Azerbaijani government's destruction of the Armenian cemetery in Djulfa, a unique archaeological treasure located in the Nakhichevan autonomous republic administered by Azerbaijan. The resolution, which was approved by a vote of 85 to 5, noted that, "serious allegations have been raised about the involvement of the Azerbaijani authorities in the destruction of these monuments" and stressed that " Azerbaijan has not provided answers [on this matter to] the former special rapporteur of the United Nations." Based on these and other findings, the European Parliament "strongly condemns the destruction of the Djulfa cemetery [
]" and "demands that Azerbaijan allow missions dedicated to surveying and protecting the archaeological heritage on its territory, especially Armenian heritage [
]." The measure also asks Azerbaijan to "allow a European Parliament delegation to visit the archaeological site at Djulfa." "We extend our warmest congratulations to the Members of the European Parliament for the principled and comprehensive nature of this condemnation. We regret, however, attempts, especially from the European Greens, to obscure Azerbaijan's crime by drawing fake parallels with alleged destruction of cultural sites by Armenia," stated Hilda Tchoboian, the Chairperson of the European Armenian Federation. The European Armenian Federation calls upon the presidency of the European Parliament to promptly send the parliamentary delegation called for in this resolution to survey the destruction of Djulfa. The Federation also expressed its hope that this European initiative will encourage other national, multilateral and international bodies to condemn the Djulfa destruction with the same energy that they devoted to their protests in 2001 of the Buddhas of Bamiyan. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Politico: Belarus delivered advanced weapons to Azerbaijan in 2018-2022 Belarus delivered advanced weapons to Armenia’s enemy even though both countries were supposedly allies in a defense pact. Armenia Security Council chief to attend Ukraine peace summit Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia Armen Grigoryan will take part in the Ukraine peace summit in Switzerland. Armenian govt. approves ratification of EAEU-Iran free trade deal At a meeting on Friday, June 14, the Armenian government approved the ratification of an EAEU free trade agreement with Iran. Deputy U.S. Secretary of State to arrive in Yerevan Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources Richard R. Verma will travel to Yerevan, Armenia from June 17-19 to. |