ArmInfo. The international community at one time ignored the war crimes of Azerbaijan in Artsakh, and is now dealing with the consequences of these actions, Armenian MP Tigran Abrahamyan believes.
The MP noted that a few days ago a report was published in the United States in which Azerbaijan was included in the religious freedom watch list for engaging in or tolerating serious violations of religious freedom after establishing control over Artsakh.
"The fact that Azerbaijan committed war crimes in various directions and episodes after 2020 is already known to everyone. However, what is much more problematic is that they were ignored or forgiven by international players at different stages and for various reasons, and now their consequences are only being considered ", the deputy noted.
At the same time, he called it noteworthy that Azerbaijan's propaganda channels made a big fuss about this, specifically blaming the United States and the Secretary of State for the wording contained in the report.
"Azerbaijan is trying to create the impression that President Aliyev is the only reason for recent successes, despite the fact that it was obvious from the very beginning that without the active participation of Turkey and the silence of geopolitical actors, there will be no serious progress.
The existence of the Armenian government is already a guarantee of the growth of Azerbaijan's influence and the strengthening of its interests, and other factors already follow from this," Abrahamyan added.
On January 5 it became known that the United States included Azerbaijan in a special list of countries that commit serious violations of religious freedom. This potentially opens the door to sanctions from the US government.
In releasing the annual list of violators, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken retained all 12 countries that were already on the blacklist last year: Burma, China, Cuba, North Korea, Eritrea, Iran, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.
In his statement on the global religious freedom, Blinken said, in particular: "I have designated Burma, the People's Republic of China, Cuba, the DPRK, Eritrea, Iran, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan as Countries of Particular Concern for having engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom. In addition, I have designated Algeria, Azerbaijan, the Central African Republic, Comoros, and Vietnam as Special Watch List countries for engaging in or tolerating severe violations of religious freedom. Finally, I have designated al-Shabab, Boko Haram, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the Houthis, ISIS-Sahel, ISIS-West Africa, al-Qa'ida affiliate Jamaat Nasr al-Islam wal- Muslimin, and the Taliban as Entities of Particular Concern.
"Significant violations of religious freedom also occur in countries that are not designated. Governments must end abuses such as attacks on members of religious minority communities and their places of worship, communal violence and lengthy imprisonment for peaceful expression, transnational repression, and calls to violence against religious communities, among other violations that occur in too many places around the world. The challenges to religious freedom across the globe are structural, systemic, and deeply entrenched. But with thoughtful, sustained commitment from those who are unwilling to accept hatred, intolerance, and persecution as the status quo we will one day see a world where all people live with dignity and equality."
In its 2023 Annual Report, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) recommended that the U.S. Department of State include Azerbaijan on its Special Watch List for engaging in or tolerating severe violations of religious freedom. In December 2022, USCIRF released a report on authoritarian states' promotion of religious tolerance.
The report provides an update on religious freedom conditions in Azerbaijan in 2023. Although Azerbaijan has in recent years ceased some problematic practices regarding state interference in its people's practice of their religion or beliefs, the government has shown little interest in reforming laws and policies that violate Azerbaijan's international human rights commitments. Within the last three years, the government has twice amended its religion law to introduce new restrictions on a variety of religious activities. The report describes the legislative framework that facilitates the official regulation of religious practice, concerns for religious sites in Nagorno-Karabakh, the ongoing repression of Shi'a Muslim religious activists, and the impact of the government's refusal to allow conscientious objection.