BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 16. Swiss Vice President Ignazio Cassis put Armenian revanchist Erich Fontobel in his place after he asked a provocative question in the Swiss parliament.
Thus, on June 15, during the “Question Time for the Government” (Fragestunde) in the Swiss parliament, MP Erich Fontobel, a lobbyist for Armenian revanchists, asked the country’s Vice President and Head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs of Switzerland, Ignazio Cassis, a question about the current status of his initiative called the “Peace Forum for Nagorno-Karabakh”.
In response, Cassis stated that neither the Azerbaijani nor the Armenian side had considered the organization of this forum appropriate from the very beginning. This position was confirmed during political consultations held with both countries in April of this year.
He also noted that the Swiss side does not recognize “Nagorno-Karabakh” as a state entity and supports the process of normalizing relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
Nevertheless, Fontobel stated that although Azerbaijan and Armenia hold a unified position on this issue, it is necessary to involve people directly affected by the conflict in the peace process, namely persons of Armenian origin who voluntarily left the Karabakh region.
I. Cassis emphasized that Switzerland maintains official relations only with sovereign states in accordance with international relations. He noted that establishing direct political relations with third parties could be seen as interference in the internal affairs of other states, which does not correspond to Switzerland’s interests.
