PP and Bildu demand explanations for Armengol’s floral laying in Baku at a monument to the occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh

Eduardo González The People's Party (PP) and Euskal Herria Bildu have demanded explanations from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding the recent official visit of the Speaker of the Congress of Deputies, Francina Armengol, to Azerbaijan, during which she laid a floral offering at a monument commemorating the occupation of the Armenian region of Nagorno-Karabakh. They recall that this military action led to the expulsion of 100,000 Armenian civilians, an act described as “ethnic cleansing” by the European Parliament. The visit, which took place on January 23 and 24 and received extensive coverage from Azerbaijani media, included meetings with Prime Minister Ali Asadov and with parliamentary representatives. On the first day of the visit, Armengol laid a wreath at the Victory Monument in Baku, which commemorates the defeat of Armenia and the Azerbaijani army's takeover of the Nagorno-Karabakh region in 2013. At the end of January, both the People's Party (PP) and Jon Iñarritu of Euskal Herria Bildu submitted non-binding motions requesting explanations from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding the visit, but both motions were rejected on February 10 due to votes from the Socialist Party (PSOE) and Sumar. That same day, the issue was addressed in Congress by Pablo Hispán of PP, who denounced the tribute paid by Armengol "at a monument commemorating ethnic cleansing, all with the approval of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs." He also noted that several PP and Socialist Party (PSOE) members of parliament are on a blacklist and are banned from entering Azerbaijan, and he described the withdrawal of the two non-binding resolutions as "pure authoritarian hypocrisy." For his part, Jon Iñarritu denounced in the same plenary session the "shameful trip of the third-highest authority in the State to a dictatorial state like Azerbaijan," during which she "glorified the ethnic cleansing of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh," and therefore demanded the adoption of "some measure to apologize to the Armenians for this affront." Separately, the Popular Parliamentary Group requested, on February 5, the “urgent appearance” of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, before the Foreign Affairs Committee “to explain the steps taken by the Embassy for Mrs. Armengol’s visit to Azerbaijan during the days of official mourning for the Adamuz accident.” Parliamentary questions Furthermore, the Official Gazette of the Spanish Parliament (BOCG) published on Monday, February 16, two written parliamentary questions from the People's Party (PP) and a third from EH Bildu on this same topic. In its first question, dated January 28, the People's Party points out that the Victory Monument commemorates the Armenian Army's takeover of the Nagorno-Karabakh region and that this conflict "resulted in the expulsion of more than 100,000 Armenian civilians," which was described as "ethnic cleansing" by the European Parliament in October 2023 and has been denounced "in similar terms by various international human rights organizations." Therefore, it asks the Ministry of Foreign Affairs whether it was aware of Armengol's intention to "travel to a country that has several members of parliament from the PSOE and PP parties on a blacklist," whether it "approved" Armengol's trip, and whether "the government's policy would be different if the country did not have immense gas reserves." It also asks whether the Spanish ambassador to Azerbaijan, based in Turkey (Cristina Latorre), was present at the wreath-laying ceremony. Photos published by Azerbaijani media show Armengol alongside Latorre. On February 3, the People's Party (PP) submitted another written question asking the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to clarify whether it "endorsed" Armengol's visit and "the laying of a wreath at a site that symbolizes a military offensive described by the European Parliament as 'ethnic cleansing'," whether it considers "this institutional gesture consistent with Spain's position in defense of the Armenian people and with the resolutions passed by both the European Parliament and the Spanish Congress of Deputies," and whether the Government "has offered or plans to offer any explanation to its European partners regarding this gesture, given that no other high-ranking official of an EU member state has made a similar offering since the monument's inauguration." For his part, Jon Iñarritu, of Euskal Herria Bildu, submitted a question on February 4th asking the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to report on “what specific instructions” it sent to the Speaker of the Congress of Deputies regarding the visit, “and in particular the events at the Victory Monument and Museum in Baku,” and whether “the visit to the Monument was part of the initial agenda planned before the trip.” “If so, when was it included and who formally approved its inclusion? If not, when and why was it added later?” he continued. EH Bildu also asked “which individuals or bodies within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs formally approved the visit's agenda” and whether the Government will conduct an investigation into the matter to “identify any procedural or judgmental errors in the planning and advising of the visit.”

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