ArmInfo. On July 30 in Vienna, at the initiative of the Armenian delegation, the issue of Azerbaijan's encouragement of hate crimes was included in the agenda of the OSCE Permanent Council meeting. The RA MFA reports.
The Permanent Representative of Armenia, Ambassador Armen Papikyan, presenting cases of violence against Armenians and members of Armenian communities in the OSCE participating States and other countries, the disruption of the normal functioning of Armenian diplomatic missions in some countries and the deliberate destruction of their property, noted that these are hate crimes based on ethnicity carried out by some groups of Azerbaijanis with the aim of intimidating and persecuting Armenians, members of Armenian community structures.
Then Papikyan informed the representatives of the OSCE participating States that the aggressive actions of these groups of Azerbaijanis were organized and directed by the Azerbaijani embassies in these countries. Moreover, the evidence from the Armenian side testifies to the fact that in at least one case the organization of these actions was also assisted by the Turkish embassy.
The Ambassador stressed that violence against Armenians in different countries, while it seems to be a new phenomenon, is nevertheless a continuation of the propaganda of anti-Armenian hatred, which the Azerbaijani society has been subjected to for decades. In this regard, the Permanent Representative of Armenia noted that the policy of Armenophobia, aimed at instilling hatred and intolerance towards Armenians among the population of Azerbaijan, is being carried out at the highest state level.
Papikyan then noted that Armenia has always drawn the attention of its international partners to the anti-Armenian policy and propaganda of the Azerbaijani authorities, warning that with such a high level of Armenophobia, it can easily move to the territory of other countries, which we are witnessing today: "We are convinced that the absence the corresponding reaction from the international community, which is tantamount to the connivance of Azerbaijan and its dictatorial authorities, further encourages the ruling regime in this country to continue the propaganda of Armenophobia>.
In his speech, the Permanent Representative of Armenia strongly condemned the violence against Armenians in different countries, which is another manifestation of the irresponsible policy of Baku and is consonant with the policy and rhetoric of the Azerbaijani leadership to incite hostility between the two peoples without geographical restrictions.