The Board of the Union of Armenian Associations in Sweden addressed a letter to Hungarian ambassador in Stockholm, Mr. Gábor Szentiványi.

The letter reads that “for the past 24 hours, the world media has been reporting on the extradition of the Azerbaijani axe murderer Ramil Safarov who upon arrival to Baku was welcomed as a hero, pardoned by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, promoted to the rank of major, rewarded with a house and got paid for the last eight years’ salary.”

“This means only that Safarov, while committing the murder in Budapest and being convicted for that murder has de facto been in the service of Azerbaijani Military forces during this whole time. In no country a murderer would withhold his military salary, not to mention being promoted for his crime. Azerbaijan has now openly sanctioned the possibility of killing Armenians for later being celebrated and promoted for it,” the letter says.

“With this action Azerbaijan has not only displayed its open hatred towards Armenians, but also mocked and violated the Hungarian justice system, a member of the European Union. Certainly, Hungarian Justice Ministry has stated that Azerbaijan had assured them that Safarov would, in accordance with the 1983 Strasbourg Convention on the Transfer of Sentenced Persons, under which he was being extradited, serve the remaining of his sentence in Baku, but this has evidently not been the case.”

“Mr. Ambassador, the Union of Armenian Associations in Sweden wishes to find out how Your Government will now react to this breach of rules and agreements and demand Baku to honour the laws according to which the extradition was performed. Sources claim that Azeri financial aid to Hungary in form of purchase of state bonds being the prelude to this episode. However, we firmly hope that Hungarian justice and integrity is above this kind of agreements and the rumors are nothing but just rumors. We hope that Your Government, as a member of the European community in the 21st century respecting international laws, will reprimand Baku for its disrespectful action against justice, human values, and Hungary’s reputation,” the letter says.