Foreign Affairs committee  There's no doubt that Georgia, between Russia and Azerbaijan, is in an uncomfortable geopolitical position. It's in areas where the border is more poorly defined that it would be transgressed, it seems. That is what creates this problematic situation where we can't point to an outright violation of international law.

Foreign Affairs committee  As much as possible, from a legal aspect, support the international process to make sure that Canada is a leader with regard to international law, and don't apply international law on a part-time basis compared to Ukraine, Gaza and what we're seeing in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Foreign Affairs committee  When it comes to Russia, it had the potential to stop ethnic cleansing with its peace mission. Yet it chose not to fulfill its mission on the ground. Russia seems to be moving further and further away from its role in the South Caucasus, which really creates an opportunity for Canada to play a more active role and exercise greater leadership in the region.

Foreign Affairs committee  Yes, thank you very much. I think that for the moment, the ICC represents probably the best legal mechanism on the table. Obviously, Armenia has not ratified, for the moment, the Rome Statute. However, at the moment when Armenia would ratify the Rome Statute, the condition in which the refugees are living in Armenia could be considered, in a way, another crime against humanity linked to the potential ethnic cleansing.

Foreign Affairs committee  I think Canada has a huge role to play in the idea of universal jurisdiction with regard to war crimes, crimes against humanity, and potentially crimes of genocide by documenting crimes and being an acting partner within the International Criminal Court. As I mentioned, if Armenia finally ratified their own statute, there will be room under the ICC to bring forward a case for Nagomo-Karabakh to the ICC with a referral from Canada.

Foreign Affairs committee  In a nutshell, I think for the moment we have to be honest that many of the western partners are not doing as much as they should with regard to applying international law and reacting to the violation of international law, as well as imposing sanctions or even providing safety and security measures for the local Nagomo-Karabakh population as well as Armenia, in the southern situation that we were all discussing before.

Foreign Affairs committee  In September of 2023, Azerbaijan launched a new military offensive to retake the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Although in violation of the 2020 ceasefire, the operation was designed to take over the region while Russia remained bogged down in Ukraine and mainly uninterested in fulfilling its mandate as a peace guarantor.