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APA (25 November 2017)

The warning of the European Commission related to the commercial activity in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan is an initial step towards fulfillment of the legitimate demands of our country in regard to prevention of illegal activity of the EU's physical and legal persons in the occupied territories, Spokesman for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Hikmat Hajiyev told APA.

He said that a warning was post in the market access database on the official website of the Directorate General for Trade of the European Commission on the prosecution caused by the commercial activities of EU companies in Azerbaijan’s occupied territories. “The warning states that EU companies engaging in any commercial activity in Nagorno-Karabakh and/or the surrounding territories, whether directly or through business subsidiaries, risk civil and criminal penalties. Such activity can result in criminal prosecution or other legal action being taken against individuals and businesses in Azerbaijan and it may also affect the ability to travel to Azerbaijan in the future. Continued promotion of our principled position at all levels with the EU, including within the existing formats of dialogues, joint commissions with the EU member states on bilateral trade and economic cooperation, played an important role in achieving the initial result. Continuation of this tendency does not exclude the implementation of next and more effective measures by EU in the future,” said Hajiyev.

He pointed out that when the European Union takes political decisions related to Azerbaijan in the context of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict, the opinion of the office of the EU Special Representative (EUSR) for the South Caucasus and the crisis in Georgia is taken as a basis.

EUSR gives a report and receives recommendations from the Political and Security Committee (ambassadors of EU member states), which means that regardless of where the warning is published, all EU member states must unequivocally comply with it, added Hajiyev.

Using the abovementioned warning during the discussions in European institutions where Azerbaijan is a member state, can help in promoting the country’s principled position, he said.