November 30, 2017 - 11:24 AMT
Armenia blasts PABSEC declaration 'sponsored' by Turkey, Azerbaijan

The declaration adopted by the PABSEC (Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation) under the aegis of Azerbaijan and Turkey is both anti-Armenian and illegal, deputy speaker of the Armenian parliament Eduard Sharmazanov said.

Prior to the opening of the Assembly, when the members of the delegations were waiting in the Session Hall for about an hour, it turned out that on the initiative of the PABSEC Secretary General and the head of the Ukrainian delegation, the heads of all other delegations retired to "discuss certain issues". Only the head of the Armenian delegation was not invited to that discussion. Later developments revealed that a change had been made in the text of a previously agreed declaration.

"Rejecting the principles of the international law, Azerbaijan and Turkey have taken into consideration only one principle, i.e. that of territorial integrity, adopting a decision which doesn't stem from Armenia's interests and contradicts the legal basis as well," Sharmazanov said.

The lawmaker added that the declaration will have impact on the process of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement, at the same time describing the move as unpleasant which will by no means support the peaceful resolution of the issue.

Following the incident, the Armenian delegation left the session and did not returned.