Azerbaijan leader accuses France of colonial ‘crimes’ in COP29 speech

French Ecology Minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher says she will not return portion successful nan COP29 ambiance talks successful Azerbaijan aft its leader’s ‘unacceptable’ attacks connected France.

French Ecology Minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher has pulled retired of nan COP29 ambiance talks successful Azerbaijan aft its President Ilham Aliyev accused France of carrying retired colonialist “crimes” successful New Caledonia, successful nan latest negotiated spat betwixt nan 2 countries.

Aliyev, who is hosting nan COP29 United Nations ambiance talks successful Baku, drew large applause from delegates of immoderate Pacific land nations aft a combative reside successful which he lambasted Paris complete nan consequence to protests that successful May rocked nan Pacific archipelago ruled by France.

“The crimes of France successful its alleged overseas territories would not beryllium complete without mentioning nan caller quality authorities violations,” said Aliyev.

“The authorities of President [Emmanuel] Macron killed 13 group and wounded 169… during morganatic protests by nan Kanak group successful New Caledonia,” he added.

Pannier-Runacher quickly deed back, telling lawmakers successful Paris that she was cancelling her travel to nan talks successful protestation astatine Aliyev’s “deplorable” speech. She called his onslaught “unacceptable… and beneath nan dignity of nan presidency of nan COP”.

It was besides a “flagrant usurpation of nan codification of conduct” for moving United Nations ambiance talks, she added.

Pannier-Runacher said she would not spell to nan UN’s COP29 ambiance talks successful Azerbaijan because of its leader’s ‘unacceptable’ attacks connected France [File: Ludovic Marin/AFP]

The curate besides criticised Aliyev for his “equally unacceptable comments connected fossil fuels” aft he described his country’s immense lipid and state reserves arsenic a “gift of God”.

Despite her pullout, Pannier-Runacher said nan squad of French negotiators successful Baku would not relent successful their efforts to do a woody “to protect nan satellite and its populations” from ambiance change.

Relations betwixt Paris and Baku are frosty complete France’s longtime support for its archrival Armenia, which Azerbaijan defeated in a lightning subject violative past year erstwhile it retook nan breakaway Armenian-populated region of Nagorno-Karabakh – starring to nan displacement of much than 100,000 Armenians.

Paris this twelvemonth accused Azerbaijan of interfering successful its home authorities by stoking tensions successful its overseas territories and dependencies, including New Caledonia.

Macron has besides stayed distant from COP29.

Azerbaijan denies interference, but Aliyev connected Wednesday rounded connected France for holding Corsica and its far-flung overseas land territories “under nan assemblage yoke”.

Aliyev has ruled his gas-rich state for much than 2 decades since nan decease of his father, Azerbaijan’s Soviet-era Communist leader and erstwhile KGB wide Heydar Aliyev.

In nan run-up to nan ambiance summit, Azerbaijan was wide denounced for its quality authorities grounds and repression of governmental opposition.

Aliyev successful his reside attacked nan European Union and nan Council of Europe quality authorities body, calling them “symbols of governmental corruption that stock work pinch nan authorities of President Macron for nan killings of guiltless people”.

He besides said that “all governmental prisoners of France must beryllium liberated”.

Aliyev accused EU overseas argumentation main Josep Borell of having compared nan remainder of nan world to a jungle while Europe was a garden. “If we are nan jungles,” he declared, “then enactment distant from america and don’t interfere successful our affairs.”