By Orkhan Sattarov, Head of the European Bureau of Vestnik Kavkaza
According to Azerbaijani Consul to Stuttgart Otto Hauser, German ex-Ambassador to Armenia Hans-Jochen Schmidt denied his Panarmenian credited words about the unprofessional approach of German observers to the recent presidential polls in Azerbaijan.
A few months ago, the Panarmenian news agency, quoting Schmidt, said that the observers visiting Baku on the invitation of Otto Hauser spent most of their time having fun at a yacht club. It is noteworthy that no sources proving the accusations were given. Considering the fact that neither Hans-Jochen Schmidt nor Otto Hauser himself were in Azerbaijan during the presidential elections of October, the information seems very doubtful.
After publication of an interview of Vestnik Kavkaza with Otto Hauser, Panarmenian released a video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDeOD0Ga63o) with Schmidt’s words about Otto Hauser and German observers in Azerbaijan. “Some diplomats tend to deny words said earlier… However, in the 21st century, all events are generally recorded and kept in archives for a long time,” Panarmenian says. Vestnik Kavkaza emphasizes that no mistakes or misinterpretations were made when translating Otto Hauser’s interview from German to Russian.
After the release of the video, Schmidt, facing a threat of a lawsuit for slander and abuse of dignity, decided to smooth the situation. In his letter to the honorary consul filed on February 13, Schmidt called the ‘doubtful publication’ of the Armenian agency a ‘compositum mixtum’. In his words, the video was a partial reproduction of distorted speech from reports and interviews without specified time and place. The video posted by Panarmenian is not a mix of the ex-ambassador’s speeches at different places. It is a solid and authentic video.
Schmidt’s reaction to the video shows that he, ‘caught red-handed’, was forced to change behaviour. At first, he was denying his words about the German monitoring mission in Azerbaijan. In his letter to the consul in Stuttgart, the ex-ambassador insisted that he had not said anything about monitoring of elections in Azerbaijan. Now, he says that the words were distorted.
The editorial policy of Vestnik Kavkaza is to publish only verified and confirmed information. All quotes of ex-ambassador Schmidt are based on real correspondence between the honorary consul of Azerbaijan in Stuttgart and the ex-ambassador of Germany in Azerbaijan.
