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U.S. Department Of State: The United States is extremely troubled by the news that the President of Azerbaijan pardoned Azerbaijani army officer Ramil Safarov

U.S. Department Of State: The United States is extremely troubled by the news that the President of Azerbaijan pardoned Azerbaijani army officer Ramil Safarov

1 September 2012

Patrick Ventrell, Acting Deputy Spokesperson of the U.S. Department Of State has made a statement on the pardon to Azerbaijani officer Ramil Safarov.  "The United States is extremely troubled by the news that the President of Azerbaijan pardoned Azerbaijani army officer Ramil Safarov, who returned to Baku today following his transfer from Hungary. Mr.   Safarov had been serving a life sentence in a Hungarian jail for murdering Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan during a 2004 NATO training event in Budapest.   We are expressing our deep concern to Azerbaijan regarding this action and seeking an explanation. We are also seeking further details from Hungary regarding the decision to transfer Mr. Safarov to Azerbaijan.   We condemn any action that fuels regional tensions,\" the statement reads.  

Earlier on August 31 the Armenian authorities adopted a decision to suspend diplomatic relations and official contacts wit Hungary, President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan said during a special meeting with the heads of diplomatic missions on Friday. The decision followed the decision of the Hungarian authorities to extradite an Azeri officer Ramil Safarov who sentenced by a Hungarian court to life in jail for killing sleeping Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan with an axe in Budapest in 2004. Both the officers were undergoing an English language course under the NATO PfP program. The same day after Safarov\'s extradition, Azeri President Ilham Aliyev decreed to pardon the criminal.

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