Azerbaijan maliciously misleads the Organization of Islamic Cooperation
During the regular session of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Council of Foreign Ministers held in Istanbul on June 21-22, 2025, a declaration was adopted, parts of which—along with separate resolutions—concerning Armenia and the region are misleading, unacceptable and deeply concerning.
Specifically, historical and political events, as well as ongoing processes in the region, are misrepresented in a highly distorted manner. Alongside phrases like “Western Azerbaijan” or “present-day Armenia,” official Baku’s state propaganda machine has pushed forward false claims, including demands related to the so-called “forced and systematic displacement” of Azerbaijanis and their right to return, the destruction of Islamic cultural heritage and so on. Armenia is criticized for not engaging in dialogue with organizations representing the “Western Azerbaijan” community. Moreover, Armenia is presented with the demand to satisfy Azerbaijan’s illegal and fabricated demands in exchange for signing a peace agreement.
The Armenian National Committee-International strongly condemns the Istanbul statement and the individual resolutions of the Islamic Cooperation Organization’s Council of Foreign Ministers, which aim to present the Karabakh-Azerbaijan conflict in a one-sided manner and distort the essence of the Nagorno-Karabakh issue. It is necessary to state that the origin of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was conditioned by Azerbaijan’s aggression against the exercise of the right to self-determination of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Unfortunately, this organization, which speaks on behalf of the entire Islamic world, has once again yielded to Azerbaijan’s fabricated demands and is creating a dangerous situation that could threaten peaceful coexistence between Christian and Muslim populations in both the South Caucasus and neighboring regions. The use of this major organization by Azerbaijan to ignite inter-religious conflicts must be rejected by Islamic countries.
It is also highly strange that, while the Islamic Cooperation Organization’s Council of Foreign Ministers condemns Israeli criminal policies in the Middle East, it has simultaneously failed to address the actions of Azerbaijan, a key strategic ally of Israel in the region, which contradict the very goals of the organization and the political positions of its key member states.
A glaring example of political hypocrisy and one-sidedness is the repetition of Azerbaijan’s fabricated demands, while conveniently ignoring the fact of Azerbaijan’s occupation of the Republic of Armenia’s territories, its genocidal policies leading to the ethnic cleansing of Nagorno-Karabakh, the need for the realization of the right of return for Armenians from Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), the release of prisoners of war, the systematic and deliberate destruction and/or expropriation of the cultural identity of Artsakh’s Armenian cultural heritage, and other actions by Azerbaijan aimed at disrupting peace in the region.
A distinct part of the Armenian diaspora, living in various countries of the Middle East, knows from experience the possibility of peaceful coexistence between Christian and Muslim peoples. Therefore, Azerbaijan’s policy of inciting inter-religious hatred and any international attempts to give in to it are decisively rejected.
In a period of global events when international law is being trampled upon by both great and small powers, we expect the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which adheres to the principles of the U.N. Charter, international law and lofty Islamic values of “peace, compassion, tolerance, equality, justice and human dignity,” to uphold these principles in its stance.
Armenian National Committee-International
Yerevan, June 23, 2025
Guest Contributor
Even without the intense Azerbaijani propaganda machine and lobbying (as well as the Turkish propaganda machine and lobbying) in the OIC, the OIC has been biased against Armenia and skewed towards Azerbaijan anyway. Armenia would not have been invited by this pan-Islamic organization to address its members anyway. That is why, making headway with the worthless and useless OIC is not possible. Armenian lobbying activities have not been successful in the Muslim World, Asia and Africa, because of intense Azerbaijani and Turkish lobbying activities there. But on the other hand, Armenian lobbying activities have been more successful in the Western World (Europe and the Americas), than Azerbaijani and Turkish lobbying activities, and Armenian lobbies should continue to prioritise the West, where positive results have born fruit, like the recognition of the Armenian Genocide.
Azerbaijan has recently chosen offensive posture against Armenia, but Armenia just took defensive approach and heavily relied on Russia. There were 270464 Armenian and 586052 Turk in Baku in 1970, but in 1999 just 378 Armenian remained and 1574252 Turk lived there, What had happened to those Armenian, mascaraed or displaced?! The same is true in Sumqayit and in the other places, and all of those places can be called Eastern Armenia. I do not know why Armenia does not try to expose the massacres’ committed by the Turk against Armenian people around Baku since the beginning of 20th century?