The Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomes the ruling of the Supreme Court of Azerbaijan on 23 April 2020, acquitting Ilgar Mammadov, Chair of the Republican Alternative (REAL) Party, and Rasul Jafarov, a prominent human rights defender.
This judgement is in line with the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights in the cases of Mammadov v. Azerbaijan and Jafarov v. Azerbaijan , calling for the unconditional release of Ilgar Mammadov and Rasul Jafarov.
Latvia highly appreciates this step taken by Azerbaijan to implement the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights, and encourages Azerbaijan to continue strengthening the right to freedom of expression, and ensuring this freedom.