ArmInfo. France accused Azerbaijan on Tuesday 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.
The announcement about the arrest was made by Azerbaijan's Ambassador France, Leyla Abdyllayeva, who told Agence France Presse that Martin Ryan, the French national, was arrested on December 4, yet Azerbaijan's National Security Service has not made any such announcements.
Judicial authorities then "ordered his detention for a duration of four months," the ambassador said, adding that the French embassy in Baku was informed "as soon as he was arrested."
"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," France's Foreign Ministry said in a statement, 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."
Ryan, the CEO of Mercorama LC, a French citizen conducting business in Baku, has categorically denied the charges and entered a not guilty plea.
Nizami Aliyev, a lawyer representing Martin Ryan, told the Turan new agency that "Martin Ryan does not plead guilty. He was simply deceived by the French intelligence services."
Ryan's attorney did not provide details to AFP, saying that "talking about this case is dangerous. Martin is not a spy. He is an ordinary French citizen."
Martin Ryan's father, Richard, said that the family has spoken to him.
"We spoke to him four times, each time for two minutes. He says he's being treated well and is getting on well with his lawyer," Richard Ryan told AFP.
The news comes amid escalating diplomatic tensions between Azerbaijan and France over what Baku has deemed Paris' "one-sided" approach to the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict. Baku has also condemned France for agreeing to sell military hardware to Armenia.
In December, Baku expelled two French diplomats over "conduct that is not compatible with their diplomatic status." The French foreign ministry retaliated by expelling two Azerbaijani diplomats a day later, and said it "categorically reject[ed] the allegations."