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BAKU, Azerbaijan, January 26. The Germans
regard the citizens of the small town of Waltrop as ordinary and
hardworking. Frank Schwabe, who was born in Waltrop 54 years ago,
appears to have chosen to break the mold and stick out of the crowd
by altering the perception of this town in the German province of
North Rhine-Westphalia.
Frank Schwabe has been a member of the Social Democratic Party
of Germany since 2005, and he presently leads the Social Democrats’
faction in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
(PACE).
Notoriously enjoying disrepute and known as “Korrupte Seele”
(“Corrupted Soul” in German), he has been chameleonizing a variety
of strategies to strengthen his position in PACE and eventually
gain participation in the European Parliament.
Frank Schwabe’s recent efforts in PACE, particularly his
principal demand for the non-ratification of the Azerbaijani
delegation’s powers, are not entirely this troublemaker’s own
initiative.
Schwabe effectively carried out a political directive by
accepting the resolution, which represented the consistent stance
of political forces in France and Germany.
However, his goals extend beyond simply supporting a resolution
intended to considerably chill relations with Azerbaijan, a country
of special importance in terms of geopolitical, economic, and
geostrategic interests for both the European Union and the Council
of Europe in the South Caucasus.
According to the preamble of the guidelines Schwabe received,
Europe is in charge of regulating communications between the EU and
the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE),
which are acknowledged as Europe’s two principal political
bodies.
This demand stems from France’s losing influence in the European
arena during the last four years, the increased significance of the
European Parliament and PACE, and, ultimately, the strengthening of
the French government’s authority over these institutions.
For this reason, Schwabe, dissatisfied with penalties imposed
merely on the Azerbaijani delegation, has included the OSCE as a
target in the process.
In an interview with the BBC Azerbaijani service, he made
statements that are expected to have a considerable impact on the
European Union.
“Our rapporteurs in Azerbaijan requested to visit Baku, but they
were denied entry into the country. Similar instances have
occurred. Additionally, the organization was not extended an
invitation to observe the extraordinary presidential election
scheduled in Azerbaijan for February 7. This is a universal
obligation for every country, and all others adhere to it. However,
Azerbaijan invited the OSCE instead of us. Such decisions are not
solely at the discretion of Azerbaijan. The government of
Azerbaijan cannot unilaterally decide which organization to invite
for election observation. We should have received an invitation,”
he said.
“Now, they are aware that a substantial critical report on the
election will come from the Council of Europe, and they are hopeful
that the OSCE report will not be as critical. This underscores the
importance of upholding democratic values and rules that prevail in
Europe and within our organization without allowing room for
manipulation or games,” he added.
Frank Schwabe is evidently attempting to sow discord between the
PACE and the OSCE regarding the division of power and the
definition of their operational mechanisms. Simultaneously, he
openly asserts that PACE, the organization he represents, is “more
objective, honest, and realistic” when compared to the OSCE.
This represents a challenge to the political constructs of the
European Union, as it accuses the OSCE of corruption, inferiority,
and a subjective approach without valid grounds. To be more
specific, Schwabe generally asserts that OSCE election monitoring
and observation missions are pointless, superficial, and
unnecessary.
What the German MP stated in his interview with the BBC, to be
direct, amounts to a humiliation of the OSCE and an insult to its
leadership and spokespersons.
Going further, Schwabe accused Azerbaijan of “playing a game”
against the OSCE, expressing dissatisfaction with that aspect as
well.
“I am dissatisfied with the OSCE’s visit to Azerbaijan because
we have an agreement that no country should use us against each
other. Therefore, either we are invited together or none of us go
to that country. This is what I expect from the OSCE. Although the
OSCE is aware of our stance, negotiations are ongoing in this
regard, but they are facing pressure from the Azerbaijani side.
They understand that during the discussions on the future of the
OSCE in October this year, they will require the support of all
countries, including Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan prefers to invite the
OSCE and keep the Council of Europe at a distance. This is
unacceptable, and we will not allow this to happen,” Schwabe
noted.
Azerbaijan’s expectations and desires from the OSCE, PACE,
European Parliament, and EU in general are simple, known, and
transparent.
The Government of Azerbaijan insists that these organizations
adopt a democratic, objective, truthful, impartial, and honest
approach grounded in the norms and principles of international
law.
So far, both PACE and the European Parliament have frequently
endorsed documents demonstrating a biased, subjective, and
selective approach to international law. Most concerning is the
substitution of double standards for the principles outlined in the
preamble of the law.
Engaging in racism, xenophobia, Islamophobia, Turkophobia,
overtly supporting Armenia and Armenians, and baselessly leveling
paranoid accusations against Azerbaijan cannot be deemed actions
within the realm of partnership or cooperation.
Frank Schwabe’s statements suggest that he categorizes any
politician, structure, or organization providing truthful,
fact-based, and objective assessments about Azerbaijan as
“captured,” “oppressed,” or “corrupt.”
In the vocabulary of this political figure, synonyms for the
word “Azerbaijan” exclusively consist of terms associated with
negative or illegal actions.
In contrast to political figures like Schwabe, the leadership of
the EU, NATO, and OSCE, as well as authoritative experts and
rapporteurs within these organizations, comprehends the core of
Azerbaijan’s domestic and foreign policy, Baku’s strategy, and
regional tactics. They recognize that Azerbaijan is not only a
formidable force in the South Caucasus but also a state capable of
influencing processes in Central and West Asia. This
acknowledgement extends from ensuring the energy security of the
European Union to implementing an objective policy in the fight
against international terrorism and countering the irrational
behavior of states vying for geopolitical hegemony.
Frank Schwabe portrays an image of a politician who, despite
possessing the capability to analyze the situation, seemingly fails
to comprehend these dynamics.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have dismissed as a trivial matter the
undeniable fact that PACE had virtually no impact on Armenia during
the years of Armenian occupation, where 20 percent of Azerbaijani
territories were taken, and remained indifferent to the fate of
hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijani refugees and IDPs.
PACE, which, after Azerbaijan acceded to the Council of Europe
in 2001, seemed to ignore the Armenian occupation, separatism, and
widespread violations of the rights and freedoms of Azerbaijanis by
Armenia until 2020, now aims to advocate for the rights of Karabakh
Armenians by asserting alleged pressure on them.
“This was clear to everyone. But we are not an organization
dealing with territorial conflicts; there are other organizations
handling these issues.” With such an absurd statement, Frank
Schwabe dodged the question about it.
Azerbaijan sought PACE to play a genuine and practical role, not
in resolving the territorial conflict but in putting an end to the
severe violation of the rights of hundreds of thousands of
Azerbaijanis by both Armenia and Karabakh Armenians.
This did not happen because PACE was and continues to be more
concerned with the implementation of mercantile goals than with
human rights.
Regarding Frank Schwabe’s efforts to incite intrigue and
confrontation between PACE and OSCE, we hope that the relevant
entities within the European Union will make efforts to understand
the motivations behind these counterproductive games.
This time, the OSCE has become a target amid the devastation of
the European apparatus for political cooperation and
communication.
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