France demands release of citizen accused of espionage in AzerbaijanJanuary 11, 2024 - 13:15 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - France accused Azerbaijan on Tuesday, January 9 of holding a French national arbitrarily and demanded his immediate release after Baku's envoy to France said the man had been arrested on suspicion of espionage, Reuters reports. Ties between the two countries have been strained in recent months and have worsened since Azerbaijan took control of Nagorno-Karabakh in September. Azerbaijan's ambassador to France, Leyla Abdoullayeva, told Reuters earlier on Tuesday the French citizen, Martin Ryan, was arrested on Dec. 4 on "suspicion of carrying out acts of espionage". In a statement sent to Reuters, France's foreign ministry confirmed the detention. "We are in close contact with his family and the French embassy in Baku was able to visit our compatriot twice as part of consular protection," the ministry said, adding that it had asked to see him again. "As we have already had the opportunity to indicate to the Azerbaijani authorities, we consider this detention to be arbitrary and demand the immediate release of our compatriot.” Abdoullayeva said legal authorities in Azerbaijan had ordered Ryan be initially held for four months and that the French embassy had been notified of the arrest. Baku on Dec. 26 expelled two French diplomats saying they were acting in a way that was "incompatible with their diplomatic status". France's foreign ministry, which denied the Azeri claims, the next day summoned Abdoullayeva and said it was expelling two Azeri diplomats in response. Top stories 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". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Titus, Bilirakis lead legislation to sanction Azerbaijani war criminals Representatives Dina Titus (D-NV) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) have introduced the bipartisan legislation. Armenia: Defense Ministry warns against involving army in political processes The Ministry’s statement came after a video surfaced online, showing soldiers joining the protests in Tavush. Scholz hopes Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty will be signed this year German Chancellor Olaf Scholz hopes that a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan will be signed this year. Ucom equips four bus stops in Ijevan with free Wi-Fi Ucom now provides free Wi-Fi coverage in smart bus stops in four communities of Ijevan. |