International police cooperation agency Interpol has rejected a request by Azerbaijan for an international arrest warrant to be served on a Czech Member of the European Parliament for visiting Nagorno Karabakh, Radio Prague reports.

Interpol refused to arrest of MEP Jaromír Štětina following a request from authorities in Azerbaijan.

The move followed a visit by the MEP to Karabakh in February during which Štětina denounced moves by authorities in Azerbaijan.

They said his comments helped fuel tension in the region.

The Czech said the demand for an arrest warrant was aimed at scaring off international experts and commentators against speaking out against the Baku government.

Previously, a Russian-Israeli blogger was arrested in Belarus on Baku's request. Alexander Lapshin, who divided his time in several countries, was arrested for visiting Karabakh and condemning the Azerbaijani authorities.