The President of Azerbaijan, Ilhal Aliyev, will not receive Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib, it was announced on Thursday.
According to the local press, the Azeri authorities did not appreciate the statements made on Tuesday by the Belgian head of diplomacy in Armenia over the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Speaking after a meeting with her Armenian counterpart, Lahbib had expressed her deep concern about the humanitarian situation in this enclave in Azeri territory, inhabited by a large majority of Armenians. The corridor is under a Baku-imposed blockade on the Latchine corridor linking the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region to Armenia.
She reiterated the position of the European Union of asking Azerbaijan to guarantee the security and safety of movement in the corridor.
Belgian Foreign minister Hadja Lahbib and Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan in Yerevan, Armenia on Tuesday 22 August 2023. The Foreign Minister is visiting the South Caucasus region of Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan. Credit: Belga / Nicolas Baras
"It is the duty of every state to ensure the well-being of its population. The rights and security of the Armenian population must be guaranteed. I will invite my Azeri counterpart to work to this end”, she had said, referring to the need for "respect for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of each."
'Unfounded statements'
The Belgian minister was due to be received by President Aliyev on Thursday after her arrival in Baku for an exchange of views.
According to the Azeri news website Trend, citing well-informed sources, he cancelled the meeting because of a "pro-Armenian stance and unfounded statements" made in Armenia. The meeting with Azeri Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov, on the other hand, will go ahead at 3.30pm.
When questioned in the early afternoon, Lahbib’s office maintained the minister’s comments. "From the outset, we have held a balanced and frank position, and will make the same speeches here as we did in Yerevan," the office stressed.
