BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 3. Peace is
becoming tangible for societies in Azerbaijan and Armenia,
President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Pere Joan Pons
Sampietro said in an exclusive interview with Trend, as he visited today
Baku.
Sampietro said he was invited to the 4th International Mine
Action Conference, “Humanitarian Demining for Urban Recovery:
Setting Standards of Excellence for Safe Settlements,” and on this
occasion, conducted his first high-level bilateral visit to Baku,
aimed at strengthening the OSCE PA’s engagement with
Azerbaijan.
“Meeting today with President Ilham Aliyev, we also discussed
the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace and normalization process, regional
security and opportunities for confidence building and dialogue,”
he said.
The OSCE PA president pointed out that the progress achieved
since the Washington summit has created an opportunity that should
not be lost.
“The initialling of the peace agreement was an important
achievement, which was widely acknowledged within the OSCE PA, and
I look forward to the next steps towards signature and full
ratification. We are seeing now how peace is starting to deliver –
with Azerbaijan beginning to export refined petroleum, increased
commerce, and the first direct trade between Armenia and Azerbaijan
in over three decades. These measures are a demonstration of peace
becoming tangible for both societies and ultimately show the
benefits of normalized relations over frozen conflict,” Sampietro
added.
Support for mine action in Azerbaijan
The OSCE PA president noted that landmines are a tragic,
long-term consequence of conflict that require immediate and
sustained international attention.
“The scale of mine and explosive-remnant contamination remains a
serious humanitarian and development challenge for Azerbaijan. The
ANAMA conference this week has demonstrated clearly that demining
is not simply a technical issue: it is about civilian safety,
return, reconstruction and livelihoods, all of which, of course,
are essential for economic development,” he said.
Sampietro believes that international cooperation is
indispensable.
“Azerbaijan should be able to draw more on international
expertise, technology and donor support as clearance and
reconstruction continue. Our Assembly is an important platform to
sustain the attention towards these issues on the international
agenda and create opportunities for further cooperation between our
countries,” he added.
The way forward for OSCE PA–Azerbaijan
cooperation
Sampietro pointed out that it is important to enhance
cooperation between the OSCE PA and Azerbaijan, including with the
Azerbaijani Delegation to the OSCE PA, particularly around
humanitarian mine action and other matters of urgent concern.
“International institutions are important platforms for
addressing disagreements through dialogue. We seek to listen to
Azerbaijani concerns and explore possibilities for parliamentary
engagement,” the OSCE PA president added.
He noted that the Azerbaijani Delegation to the OSCE
Parliamentary Assembly has always been quite active and
engaged.
“The OSCE PA remains one of the few parliamentary platforms
where Azerbaijan and parliamentarians from across Europe and North
America continue to engage directly, and in this respect, we have a
responsibility to continue providing a platform for open dialogue.
This is a responsibility that we embrace. We welcome all
constructive initiatives to enhance dialogue and cooperation,”
Sampietro concluded.
