YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 6, ARMENPRESS. The scandal around the Azerbaijani delegation in PACE, the criminal proceedings, as well as the Azerbaijani bribery facts of European lawmakers was a slap for Europe, Armenia’s deputy foreign minister Shavarsh Kocharyan told reporters September 6.

Commenting on the recently revealed scandal involving a 3 billion dollar “slush fund” operated by the Aliyev family to bribe European lawmakers, Kocharyan emphasized that it is no coincidence that in the context of these events Azerbaijan’s response is the same – the Armenians have done it, whatever happens Armenians are to blame.

“They say the Aliyev family has nothing to do with it, but they don’t deny that all of this had happened. This is their official response. This means that in that country, where everything is controlled, three billion dollars was taken out without their knowledge”, Kocharyan added.

Asked about Armenia’s opportunities of benefiting from the situation, the deputy FM said: “Let’s understand correctly. One is sitting in Court, he is being tried, and you are saying  - what steps you can take. Actually, this is nothing more than a trial against Azerbaijan, figuratively speaking, not legally. What is currently happening throughout entire Europe proves that the patience of people is over. People are weak, even European lawmakers, they can’t stand this temptation from Europe’s heart. If you are attentive, you’ll see that these are those lawmakers whose term in office is nearing an end, they don’t have a chance to be re-elected”.