Azerbaijan cancels scheduled talks with Armenia

Azerbaijan does not want France to be involved in its peace talks with Armenia and has canceled a four-way meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron and European Council head Charles Michel in Brussels on 7 December. This was stated by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, European Truth reports with reference to Reuters.

Aliyev said that Macron “attacked” and “insulted” Baku and should not act as an intermediary.

At the end of September, a ceasefire was reached between Azerbaijan and Armenia, and last month in Prague, the two countries agreed that an EU civilian mission would be set up on their border.

But speaking on Friday, Aliyev accused Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of trying to derail the next round of talks, insisting that France should mediate.

“Macron … attacked Azerbaijan and accused us of things we didn’t do,” Aliyev said, speaking in English at a conference with international representatives in Baku.

He noted that the French leader took an “anti-Azerbaijani position” and “offends” Baku.

“It is clear that under such circumstances, with such an attitude, France cannot be part of the peace process between Azerbaijan and Armenia,” he added.