On 3 December, the French National Assembly joined the Senate in calling for Nagorno-Karabakh’s recognition as an independent republic (Caucasus Watch reported).

The resolution was introduced to the National Assembly by Guy Teissier, a lawmaker representing the Republican opposition party. “In the face of this tragedy playing out today in the Caucasus, it is incumbent on France and other UN member states to use all their political weight to promote international recognition of the right to self-determination of the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh,” Teissier said. It was passed by 188 votes to 3. 

The French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian spoke out against such recognition before the vote, saying that it would be counterproductive for both France and the Karabakh peace process. “I hear your anger, your fears, your questions that you ask. However, I do not share the objective of this resolution, namely the recognition, because our Armenian friends are not asking us to do that. They themselves haven't recognised Karabakh,” he stated. 

However, the French lawmakers did not agree with Le Drian, saying that France has no moral right to observe the underlined neutrality in the Karabakh conflict, given its "traditional democratic values." The parliamentarians indicated that aggression against the Armenian people is taking place in the region.

The Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned the resolution, saying that France’s role was almost non-existent in Nagorno-Karabakh. “France already has no mediation mission left. Macron is in trouble as France is experiencing a very dangerous period. My wish is that France gets rid of Macron as soon as possible. Otherwise, they will not be able to get rid of ‘yellow vests.’ ‘Yellow vests’ can then turn into ‘red vests.’ They are facing such trouble. My dear brother Ilham Aliyev made such a recommendation to the French: ‘If they love Armenians so much, let them give Marseilles to Armenians.’ I also give the same recommendation. Karabakh is a land of our Azerbaijani brothers. These places have been under occupation for 28 years. The US, Russia also accept it. France also accepted it,” Erdogan stressed. 

The spokesperson of Russia’s President Dmitry Peskov also commented on the issue, saying that Russia recognises the Nagorno-Karabakh region as the territory of Azerbaijan in accordance with the UN Security Council’s relevant resolutions.

In an interview with the Armenian news agency Armenpress, Armenia’s Foreign Minister Ara Ayvazayan stated that the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh must still be able to exercise its right to self-determination. “One gets the impression that the President of Azerbaijan [Ilham Aliyev], making such statements, does not even fully understand the essence of the document he signed. [Following the text of the trilateral agreement and a recent statement from the President of Russia, the mediator of the ceasefire]… the issue of the final status of Nagorno-Karabakh has not been settled and is the subject of further negotiations. Other countries co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group are also unanimous on this issue,” he said, commenting on Aliyev’s statement that the Karabakh war is over (Caucasus Watch reported). Ayvazyan also stressed the necessity of immediate and unconditional exchange of prisoners of war and hostages based on the principle “all for all” and that repatriation of remains should be implemented without any further delay.

The Azerbaijani MFA responded to Ayvazyan’s statements by saying that Armenia’s long standing destructive position is contrary to international law and has dragged the country into an abyss. “The Armenian Foreign Minister must return to the reality from the fictional world, no matter how difficult it may be,” said the MFA, emphasising that the Azerbaijani President was well aware of the role each signed document serves, not only at the current stage, but also in the long term. “As for the exchange of prisoners and hostages, we remind the Armenian Foreign Minister that for many years the Armenian side ignored Azerbaijan’s initiative to exchange ‘everyone for everyone.’ Now the acceptance of this principle by Armenia is part of this changing reality,” the statement further read.