Asked by: Tim Loughton (Conservative - East Worthing and Shoreham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what recent assessment he has made of the potential for international negotiations to support peace in Armenia.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
We are working with Armenia, Azerbaijan, and our international partners to encourage both parties to continue peace negotiations. An agreement on 7 December between Armenia and Azerbaijan for prisoner transfers and mutual support for hosting COP29 in Baku was a positive demonstration of what can be achieved through negotiations between Baku and Yerevan. The UK has urged the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan to engage meaningfully in internationally mediated negotiations to conclude an historic final peace settlement, and we will continue to promote this where possible.
Oral Evidence Jan. 10 2024
Committee: International Relations and Defence CommitteeFound: International Relations and Defence Committee Uncorrected oral evidence: Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia-Azerbaijan
We call for the UK government to pressure Azerbaijan to immediately respect a safe and secure humanitarian corridor for all the citizens of Artsakh between the region and Armenia, and to cease any aggression in all its forms against the civilian population.
Found: Azerbaijan appears to have increased its aggression against the population in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Southwark (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Azerbaijan regarding the protection of Armenian heritage in Nagorno–Karabakh following the recent destruction of the St John the Baptist Church and the Ghazanchetsots cemetery in Shusha, and the nearby village of Karin Tak/Dashalti.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are clear that the preservation of religious and cultural sites in the region is an important issue and we take seriously reports of the destruction of churches or other sites of religious significance. We are aware of allegations from both Armenia and Azerbaijan that cultural and religious sites have been deliberately damaged over the course of the conflict. British Embassy in Baku have raised the topic of religious and cultural destruction and the need to protect such sites with the Azerbaijani government consistently and at the most senior levels.
Asked by: Andrew Bridgen (Independent - North West Leicestershire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in Azerbaijan on the (a) condition and (b) security of Armenian Christian (i) churches and (ii) other heritage sites in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK Government is clear that the preservation of religious and cultural sites in the region is an important issue and we take seriously reports of the destruction of churches or other sites of religious significance. We are aware of allegations from both Armenia and Azerbaijan that cultural and religious sites have been deliberately damaged over the course of the conflict. UK Ministers and the British Embassy in Baku have raised the topic of religious and cultural destruction with the Azerbaijani government consistently and at the most senior levels.
Asked by: Lord McInnes of Kilwinning (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Azerbaijan concerning the protection of the cultural heritage of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The preservation of religious and cultural sites in the region is an important issue and we take seriously reports of the destruction of churches or other sites of religious significance. We are aware of allegations from both Armenia and Azerbaijan that cultural and religious sites have been deliberately damaged over the course of the conflict. The British Embassy in Baku has raised the topic of religious and cultural destruction with the Azerbaijani government consistently and at senior level.
Asked by: Daniel Zeichner (Labour - Cambridge)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help promote talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department is taking to help support security in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
I underlined the UK's support for the sovereignty and security of the region during a visit to Armenia and Azerbaijan in November. The UK has urged the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan to engage meaningfully in joint and internationally-mediated negotiations to conclude a final peace settlement. We welcomed the two countries' historic joint statement of 7 December, in which important confidence-building measures were announced, aimed at reaching an historic agreement and securing lasting peace for the region.
Asked by: Andrew Bridgen (Independent - North West Leicestershire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will hold discussions with his Armenian counterpart on the protection of Armenian Christian cultural heritage sites in Nagorno-Karabakh; and whether he has made an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the inclusion of Nagorno-Karabakh in Open Door UK’s World Watch List, published on17 January 2024.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
We are clear that the preservation of religious and cultural sites in the region is an important issue and we take seriously reports of the destruction of churches and other sites of religious significance in both Armenia and Azerbaijan as a result of their long-running conflict. Ministers and the British Embassies in Yerevan and Baku have raised the need to protect such sites with the Armenian and Azerbaijani Governments consistently and at the most senior levels. Open Door UK's World Watch List provides a sobering account of the extreme difficulties faced by many Christians around the world. We note the report's comments regarding Azerbaijan and regularly raise human rights issues with the Azerbaijani Government.
Mentions:
1: Lord Anderson of Swansea (LAB - Life peer) war against Armenia. - Speech Link
2: Baroness Cox (CB - Life peer) My Lords, I was in Armenia and at the border of Nagorno-Karabakh last week. - Speech Link
3: Lord Reid of Cardowan (LAB - Life peer) and Armenia as far back as the 1990s. - Speech Link