«Emmanuel Macron must do everything to guarantee the security of Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh and the Republic of Armenia». More than a dozen French political leaders, from both the left and the right, have published a joint letter in the daily «Le Monde», calling on President Macron to intervene immediately in the processes around Armenia and Artsakh, «to prevent the irreparable».
The authors of the letter stress that the current situation marks the beginning of a new phase of escalation of Azerbaijan’s attacks against Armenians — both those living in Artsakh and citizens of Armenia — since 2020, and that Baku’s actions give them reason to believe that Azerbaijan will not stop and will use any opportunity to persecute Armenians with the aim of ethnic cleansing.
The signatories, who hold principled political differences, emphasize that even they have set aside their political rivalry when it comes to expressing support for Armenia and Artsakh, but they also admit that France has sounded this cry more than a century too late. Meanwhile, the renowned French politician and intellectual Jean Jaurès was calling in 1896 to save the Armenians, accusing France of being «silent, and therefore complicit» in «shed blood, inhuman and atrocious acts».
In the situation created around Armenia and Artsakh, the «courageous little ally», the leaders of France’s leading political forces suggest a series of steps to the head of the Élysée Palace: to condemn Azerbaijan for violations of international law, the seizure of Armenian territory, and war crimes; to provide for a humanitarian presence in Artsakh; to extend immediate economic aid to Armenia; to meet with representatives of Artsakh; and also to convince the European Union and United States partners to take the same steps and together impose sanctions against Azerbaijan.
The French legislators also urge the country’s president to work towards the operation of Stepanakert airport and the dispatch of an international peacekeeping force by the UN Security Council.
The representatives of France’s Legislative Body are convinced that Emmanuel Macron can prevent the repetition of history and prove that France is free and can rid itself of short-sighted political or economic strategies in the name of defending its humanitarian ideals.
