BAKU CONSIDERS COMPLETE WITHDRAWAL FROM COUNCIL OF EUROPE

SHUSHA, JULY 13 /SRNA/ - Azerbaijan is considering complete withdrawal from the Council of Europe, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said.

"I will say it openly: Azerbaijan is seriously considering complete withdrawal from the organization - not to suspend or freeze its membership," Aliyev said at the Shusha Global Media Forum in Shusha.

Aliyev noted that Council of Europe Secretary General Alain Berset had asked him not to withdraw Azerbaijan from the organization and to find a way to resolve the situation.

He stressed that no one would feel Azerbaijan's exit from the Council of Europe if Baku decided to make such a move, and that perhaps a change for the better would follow, TASS reported.

"We do not want conflict, but we are discriminated against there, although their claims are unfounded," Aliyev said.

According to him, the discrimination against Azerbaijan in the Council of Europe is evident from the organization's decision to strip it of its voting rights two years ago, which is still in force.

"This is a punishment for our position and territorial integrity," Aliyev concluded.