Turkey urges citizens not to travel to occupied Azerbaijani lands

Turkey urges citizens not to travel to occupied Azerbaijani lands
# 04 October 2017 12:44 (UTC +04:00)

The Turkish Foreign Ministry issued Wednesday a warning for Turkish citizens reminding them to "avoid" traveling to Armenian-occupied territories of Azerbaijan, APA reported citing Anadolu Agency.

The ministry said in a statement that it was "against" international law to visit the region without receiving permission from the Azerbaijani authorities, which may impose "various sanctions" with regard to its national legislation.

Ankara added it was not "possible" to provide a consular protection for Turkish citizens who would travel to the occupied territories.

On September 22, Turkish citizens Ufuk Uras (former MP), Ali Bayramoglu, Said Cekinoglu and Erol Katircioglu (writer, TV host) illegally visited Azerbaijan’s Nagorno-Karabakh region, occupied by the Armenian armed forces. The visit took place at the initiative of the organization named “National Congress of Western Armenians”.

Earlier, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said that the illegal visit of Turkish citizens to the occupied Azerbaijani territories did not reflect Ankara’s official policy.

Grave Crimes Investigation Department of the Azerbaijani Prosecutor General's Office filed a criminal case under the Criminal Code’s Article 318.2 (illegally crossing Azerbaijan’s state borders). All four individuals are accused under the abovementioned article. A measure of restraint in the form of arrest was chosen against them. They were declared internationally wanted.

An appeal was sent to the Turkish law enforcement to detain the four individuals.

Nagorno Garabagh

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