Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has lashed out at European critics of his government’s human rights record, saying that they are part of the worldwide “Armenian lobby” acting against his country.

Addressing the heads of Azerbaijani diplomatic missions abroad on Monday, Aliyev specifically attacked members of the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) that have accused him of rigging elections and jailing political opponents.

“Unfortunately, within this organization there is an anti-Azerbaijani group operating for many years,” he said in remarks posted on his website.

“The Armenian lobby is behind them because, as you know, the number one target of the Armenian lobby today is Azerbaijan,” he claimed. “Having joined forces, they are conducting a smear campaign against Azerbaijan.

“They certainly have representatives in the media, government bodies and social structures of other countries. They have taken deep roots and chosen Azerbaijan as the main target, trying to hit us from all sides. But despite this, they have failed to have an impact on our successful development.”

Aliyev addressed senior Azerbaijani diplomats two weeks after delivering a speech at the PACE devoted to Azerbaijan’s presidency of the Council of Europe. The speech was followed by tough questions from some PACE members highly critical of Baku’s human rights record.

Bakudaily.az