Armenia asks UN court to throw out Azerbaijan’s claim of racial discrimination

Lawyers for Armenia asked the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Monday to throw out a case filed by Azerbaijan concerning the Karabakh region.

Azerbaijan launched proceedings at the ICJ against Armenia in 2021, accusing it of committing acts of racial discrimination against Azerbaijanis in territories it occupied on the basis of "national and ethnic origin" from 1987 to 2020.

Armenia argues that the ICJ does not have the jurisdiction to hear the case and has asked the court to dismiss it, without going into its merits.

The case is based on the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, or CERD, which came into force between the two countries on Sep.15, 1996, whereas Azerbaijan's claims against Armenia also cover events in 1987, so the convention cannot be applied retroactively, they also argued.

The hearings will end on April 26, after which the court's judges are expected to make a decision.