Documents on Euronest Creation to be Signed without Belarus

22.04.2011 09:57
Архив Редакция

The ceremony of signing documents on creation of the Parliamentary Assembly of the EU "Eastern Partnership" (Euronest) is scheduled in Brussels on 3 May. Belarus will not participate in the first meeting Euronest. This was stated by the head of the Azerbaijani parliamentary delegation in Euronest, Ali Huseynov, on April 21.

«As far as I know, Belarus issue has not even been provided in the statutes, because the new regulations contain a new element: Euronest may include the country, elections of which comply with the OSCE standards,» said Ali Huseynov. Since the OSCE has not recognized the previous presidential elections in Belarus, the country automatically loses the right to participate in Euronest, BelTA informs.

The representative of Azerbaijan said that the European Parliament had taken the decision on the beginning of Euronest work without Belarus’s participation alone, not taking into account the views of parliamentarians of the partner-countries, including Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan Supports Right of Belarus to Participate in Euronest

Meanwhile, Azerbaijan calls on all six partner countries to uphold the full participation of Belarus in Euronest. As explained by Ali Huseynov, it was agreed at a summit in Prague that all six countries would participate in Euronest equally, without any conditions.

In this regard, Ali Huseynov was surprises at the MEPs’ proposal to form a delegation from Belarus under certain conditions, including representatives of civil society and political opposition in its membership. «The Parliamentary Assembly should engage people elected by the people, thus representing the Parliament as an organ of power,» assured Ali Huseynov.

Azerbaijani side absolutely disagrees on the decision of the European Parliament to reject Belarus’s participation in Euronest. According to Ali Huseynov, the presidential election in no way affect Euronest composition, since work in this organization could be implemented by the members of parliament, elected far before the 2010 presidential elections.

Speakers of the six partner countries have earlier sent a letter to the European Parliament, stating the need for equal participation of Belarus in Euronest. «We must not retreat from the positions expressed there because Euronest consists of two parts — the European Parliament and the parliamentary delegations of six partner countries. There is no rule, we are all equal,» said the politician.

In turn, the Belarusian side highly appreciated the support of Azerbaijan in this matter. Deputy Chairman of the House of Representatives Viktor Huminski thanked the parliament of Azerbaijan for a constructive and balanced position, stressing that the mutual understanding between parliamentarians of both countries contributes to the development of relations between the states.

As Telegraf previously reported, January 26, Bureau of the Parliamentary Assembly of the EU «Eastern Partnership» (Euronest) decided to start its work without the participation of representatives of Belarus. This position of MEPs was due to the events in Belarus, followed the presidential elections, including the violent dispersal of protesters in Minsk on December 19 and the massive lawsuits against civil society activists and opposition representatives.

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