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.
