UK Embassy: parliament acts independently on Artsakh hearings

PanARMENIAN.Net - The British Embassy in Azerbaijan, commenting on hearings in the UK House of Commons regarding the cultural heritage of Artsakh, said that Parliament operates independently from the government and that all related questions should be directed to that branch of power.

At the same time, it stressed that the United Kingdom “recognizes Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity and sovereignty and supports the normalization of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan,” APA reported.

“Given the high level of interest in this issue, we consider it necessary to clarify how the decision-making system functions in the United Kingdom.

The British Embassy in Baku represents His Majesty’s Government and expresses the foreign policy positions of the UK government. The embassy does not speak on behalf of the British Parliament, which in the constitutional system of the United Kingdom constitutes a separate and independent branch of power.

Parliament operates independently from the government, and hearings, debates and inquiries conducted there reflect the positions of individual members of Parliament or parliamentary committees, rather than the official policy of the government of His Majesty King Charles III.

For this reason, the embassy does not consider it appropriate to comment on the content or course of parliamentary processes,” the statement said.

It also noted that the United Kingdom’s position on the South Caucasus remains clear and unchanged.

“We recognize the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and support the normalization of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia as the only path to lasting and sustainable peace,” the statement said.

On February 25, the House of Commons held parliamentary inquiry hearings titled “Erasing the Past: Destruction of Cultural Heritage,” during which facts regarding the destruction of Armenian heritage in Artsakh were discussed.

The inquiry aimed to examine cases of destruction of Armenian cultural heritage in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) since 2023, the legal steps taken to date, as well as possible mechanisms to ensure justice and accountability. During the first session, Artak Beglaryan, president of the Artsakh Union and former Human Rights Defender of the Republic of Artsakh, delivered remarks.