Azerbaijani President Aliyev condemns France’s colonial policies
President Aliyev Criticizes France for Continuing Colonialism and Human Rights Violations
President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan sent a message to the participants of the international conference on “New Colonialism: Human Rights Violation and Injustice” held in the capital city of Baku. In the message read by the President’s Advisor Hikmet Hacıyev, Aliyev expressed his regret regarding the ongoing policy of colonialism in the 21st century.
Aliyev emphasized that Azerbaijan is greatly disturbed by the persistence of colonialism and the emergence of new forms in today’s world. He specifically mentioned France as one of the countries that continues to engage in colonial practices.
According to Aliyev, France has committed numerous crimes against humanity in the countries it invaded and colonized. The President stated that the French army massacred hundreds of thousands of civilians and conducted around 200 nuclear tests in Polynesia and 17 in Algeria during the 20th century. He claimed that the effects of these tests are still felt in those regions today.
Aliyev called for the determination of the damages caused by nuclear tests and demanded that France provide compensation. He also noted that during the 132-year occupation period, France massacred more than 1.5 million people in Algeria, and the negative effects of this occupation still persist in countries such as Morocco, Tunisia, Mali, Djibouti, Nigeria, Chad, Senegal, Comoros, Vietnam, and Haiti.
Aliyev further criticized France for being one of the countries that use the most mines in the world. He accused France of laying over 5 million mines in Algeria, which has also affected Azerbaijan where approximately 340 citizens have fallen victim to mines laid by Armenia in the last three years. According to Aliyev, this connects France and Armenia due to their experience in mine terrorism.
The President highlighted that France has not changed its policy and continues to engage in colonialism using new and shameful methods. Aliyev denounced the human rights violations and problems that occur in French overseas colonies. He accused France of violating the rights of local people in their colonial territories and criticized their hypocritical and double-standard approach.
Aliyev also accused France of widespread racism and anti-Islamism within its borders and called on French officials to combat such tendencies. He criticized France for not apologizing for their bloody crimes committed during their colonial past and instead focusing on imaginary ethnic cleansing in other countries. Aliyev argued that France uses its status as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council to pursue biased and non-objective policies while engaging in geopolitical intrigues in different regions.
President Aliyev’s message serves as a strong critique against France’s actions and policies, shedding light on the ongoing issues of colonialism and human rights violations in today’s world.
