As the UN Climate Change Conference approaches, there is growing criticism of host country Azerbaijan for its violations of international law, notably the ethnic cleansing of the Armenian Christian region of Nagorno Karabakh in September 2023.
A protest poster accusing Azerbaijan of greenwashing. protestcop29.org
On November 11, the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP29 will open in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, a country whose economy depends on its considerable oil and gas wealth. It is not only this conflict of interests that is raising eyebrows. The grotesque human rights record of Azerbaijan’s dictator, Ilham Aliyev, is also fueling opposition to Baku as conference host.
Just over a year ago, Azerbaijan invaded Nagorno Karabakh, also known as Artsakh, conquering the region in a two-day offensive and driving out the entire 120,000-strong Armenian population. The former chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Luis Moreno Ocampo, has referred to this ethno-religious cleansing as an act of genocide.
Additionally, the petro-dictatorship of Azerbaijan is illegally holding at least 23, and as many as 100, Armenians. The captives include eight current and former leaders of Artsakh. Azerbaijan captured these leaders following its military takeover of the region in September 2023.
As COP29 approaches, a growing international movement is calling for freedom for the Armenian detainees. Four leading advocates for the hostages spoke about their treatment, and pathways to justice for the displaced Armenian population, at a CSI-organized side event at the UN Human Rights Council on October 1.
Thibault van den Bossche of the European Centre for Law and Justice said it was “paradoxical” that Azerbaijan, despite its human rights violations in Nagorno Karabakh and failure to respect its international commitments, should be allowed to host COP29.
The UN climate conference named Azerbaijan as COP29 host country in December, after Baku released 32 of the Armenian hostages it was then holding.
Another speaker at the side event, human rights lawyer Siranush Sahakyan, observed in Azerbaijan’s actions the continuation of a “clear pattern of using human lives as diplomatic leverage.”
Azerbaijan’s hostage move broke the political deadlock that had lasted for months, with Armenia threatening to veto Azerbaijan’s candidacy.
Former Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian says the international community must pressure Azerbaijan to release all the detainees, as well as imprisoned Azeri activists and journalists who have voiced criticism of the Aliyev regime.
In an article for Newsweek, he wrote, “To allow Azerbaijan to host COP29 without confronting its repressive actions would be to turn a blind eye to the atrocities it has committed. And COP29, indeed, presents a rare opportunity for leverage.”
Should Azerbaijan fail to meet this demand, the international community “should be prepared to boycott the conference or to send low-ranking delegations,” Oskanian said.
There is also concern over “greenwashing” given that Azerbaijan is a major oil producing country. Petroleum products account for over 90 percent of its exports.
Opponents of Baku’s bid warn that handing COP to Azerbaijan would be tantamount to rewarding the dictatorship for its human rights violations and corrupt leadership.
Azerbaijan ranks among the world’s most corrupt states in the 2023 Corruption Perceptions Index.
Now Azerbaijan is offering western companies lucrative contracts to participate in the final phase of the ethnic cleansing process in Nagorno Karabakh. The Aliyev dictatorship has presented plans to resettle around 140,000 Azerbaijani Muslims in Nagorno Karabakh by 2026 as part of its multi-billion dollar “Great Return Program.”
In September, CSI wrote to the Swiss government urging Switzerland not to become involved in these morally questionable business dealings, after Azerbaijan claimed that Aliyev and Swiss President Viola Amherd had “discussed the contributions of Swiss companies” to “construction efforts” in Nagorno Karabakh. CSI advised Switzerland, for the sake of its reputation, to “remain aloof” from COP29.
And on October 15, the Foreign Affairs Committee of Switzerland’s National Council asked the Swiss government to “raise the situation in Nagorno Karabakh with the Azeri authorities at COP29 in Baku.”
The upcoming Baku COP29 is also facing opposition from within the European Parliament. In a post on social media platform X on October 10, Nathalie Loiseau of the Renew Europe political group called for a plenary debate on the issue.
Loiseau questioned the wisdom of awarding COP to a country that is not only fossil fuel-dependent but that is also known for “massive human rights violations.” In the post she also condemned Azerbaijan for its failure to make peace with Armenia and its ethnic cleansing of Nagorno Karabakh.
“For me this is a COP of shame,” Loiseau concluded.
