European Parliament President Martin Schulz issued a statement following Ramil Safarov’s pardon by the Azerbaijani president. 

“The convention on the transfer of sentenced people should not be abused for political purpose. I am disturbed by what appears to be a politically motivated pardon of Mr. Safarov by the President of Azerbaijan.

At the same time, I urge Azerbaijan and Armenia to avoid any moves and statements that might exacerbate the situation,” the European Parliament President’s statement reads.

Armenian News-NEWS.am reported earlier that Ramil Safarov, a lieutenant in the Azerbaijani military, was extradited on August 31 from Hungary, where he was serving a life sentence—and with no expression of either regret or remorse—for the premeditated axe murder of Armenian lieutenant Gurgen Margaryan, in his sleep, during a NATO Partnership for Peace program in Budapest back in 2004.

As expected, Ramil Safarov’s return to Baku was welcomed, as was his act of murder, by the officials of president Ilham Aliyev’s government and much of Azerbaijani society, and the Azerbaijani president immediately granted him a pardon.

And Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan announced on August 31 that Armenia is suspending its diplomatic ties with Hungary.