Azerbaijan is considering full withdrawal from the Council of Europe, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said at the opening ceremony of the 4th Shusha [i.e. Shushi] Global Media Forum, entitled "The Mission of the Media in Promoting Peace: Restoring Truth and Rebuilding Trust," Report.az informs.

The head of state noted that there was once a different picture regarding the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE): "I regret that such a situation has occurred. Back in 2001, when I was a member of the Azerbaijani Parliament, I led the delegation. I worked there for two years. Four sessions were held there per year. For me, this was an unpleasant experience. In 2023, we exercised our legitimate right and liberated our territories that remained in the hands of separatists. However, they adopted resolutions to punish Azerbaijan.”

Also, the Azerbaijani president recalled that in January 2024, the accreditation of the Azerbaijani delegation in the PACE was questioned, after which the country was deprived of its right to vote at PACE.

“This was simply a punishment against us, against our territorial integrity. The Azerbaijani delegation made a very wise decision. They refused to participate in the meetings. If we have no voting rights, why should we be there?” the Azerbaijani leader added.

Also, Aliyev recalled that Azerbaijan had also not voted for the judges of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), therefore it does not recognize their decisions.

“We have not voted for the judges; for two years, we have been subjected to discrimination. I say openly that Azerbaijan is considering full withdrawal from the organization. Not just the suspension or freezing of our membership – we are unequivocally considering leaving that structure. The secretary general of the Council of Europe contacted me and asked us not to do this and to find a way to improve the situation,” Aliyev added.

According to the Azerbaijani president, Baku considers unacceptable the decisions that are made at PACE regarding Azerbaijan without the participation of the Azerbaijani delegation.

“In that parliament, very dubious ultimatum-like decisions are being voiced against Azerbaijan. This is also completely unacceptable. These are not our decisions because they have deprived us of voting rights. This has happened without any legitimate decisions. They must restore the voting rights of our delegation. After that, the Azerbaijani delegation will return. We have not taken any wrong steps. They have made an unjust decision. Therefore, they must step back and acknowledge their mistakes. On many occasions, I have expressed my concern,” he added.

In addition, the Azerbaijani leader expressed the opinion that Azerbaijan's possible withdrawal from the Council of Europe will not have a significant impact on the organization's activities.

"That is, not much will change here. Perhaps things will be even better. We do not want to go into confrontation. They treat Azerbaijan with bias; their claims are groundless. This is not our choice. We voluntarily joined the organization in 2001. At that time, many things were different. We joined with great desire and hope that they would help us with our main wish—resolving the Garabagh [i.e. Nagorno-Karabakh] conflict," the Azerbaijani head of state added.