The Guardian published an article about the U.N. Climate Change Conference (COP29) being organized in Azerbaijan, referring to the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict.
As noted after the collapse of the Soviet Union, hostilities between the two countries had partially ended in a 1994 ceasefire. “But the simmering tension flared into violence in 2020, leading to more than 7,000 deaths and the displacement of tens of thousands of people,” reads the article.
Global peace was also put on the agenda for Cop29, drawing attention to Azerbaijan’s conduct in the war with Armenia and its human rights record, which has met with strong criticism.
Mary Robinson, a former president of Ireland, welcomed the intention to focus on peace but expressed concern over Azerbaijan’s stance: “I think the idea is a good idea. If we could make more of climate and security and peace, that would be a good step. I’m not sure the peace with Armenia is a perfect peace, to say the least. There are very big issues. There are political prisoners, I am part of a campaign to try to get them released. We should hold [Azerbaijan] to account for their own human rights record.”
