The EU must act decisively in all cases of violation of international law and human rights, and stand by the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh, the President of the Parliament, Annita Demetriou, said on Wednesday in her meeting with the Ambassador of France to Cyprus, Salina Grenet-Catalano. A statement from the Parliament said that Demetriou, who received the Ambassador of France to Cyprus, expressed her gratitude for France’s principled stance and long-term support, as a Permanent Member of the UN Security Council and a member state of the European Union, regarding the Cyprus problem and the efforts to restart talks for a settlement, in accordance with the relevant UN Resolutions. Grenet-Catalano stressed the importance of creating the right conditions for a swift resumption of the talks, it said. The President of the Parliament, it adds, also thanked France for its active solidarity as regards Cyprus’ efforts to manage ‘the disproportionate immigration pressures it has been receiving’, including the relocation of beneficiaries of international protection to France, within the framework of the EU’s Voluntary Solidarity Mechanism. It also said that, during the meeting, the close cooperation relations between Cyprus and France, based on common principles were underlined from both sides while ways of further promote inter-parliamentary exchanges were discussed, especially at the level of the Speakers of the two Parliaments, as well as the European and multilateral context. Reference was also made to the submission of an application for the participation of the House of Representatives in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Francophonie, the announcement states. There was also an exchange of views on matters of wider interest, the statement said. ‘Concern was expressed about the violation of international law and human rights of the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh as a result of the military aggression of Azerbaijan,’ it added. According to the announcement, the President of the Parliament stressed that the EU must act decisively in all cases of violations of international law and human rights, as it rightly does for Ukraine, and stand by the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh. Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.
Source: Cyprus News Agency