Cambridge – ESI at Harvard Law School panel on Azerbaijan’s Caviar Diplomacy

20 April 2022
Video: Harvard Law School Advocates for Human Rights
 

ESI’s Gerald Knaus was invited to participate in a virtual panel on Azerbaijan’s Caviar Diplomacy “A Dollar for Your Soul” organised by students from the Harvard Law School Advocates for Human Rights.

In his presentation, Gerald presented ESI’s work, analysis, and impact on Azerbaijan’s “Caviar Diplomacy”, arguing how this corrupt practice became a strategy which damaged the reputation of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) as a guardian of democracy.  

In addition, Gerald gave accounts of how politicians within PACE were bribed to lobby for the interests of the Azerbaijani government and how ESI’s work and publications since 2012 exposed this practice and showed the flaws within PACE. Gerald also spoke about Russia’s corrosive role in the Council of Europe during the last ten years and its recent expulsion from the organisation due to its invasion of Ukraine.

Gerald debated with Casey Michel (Leading investigative journalist on financial corruption) and Rasmus Canbäck (Independent Swedish journalist, author, and expert on Azerbaijan). The panel was moderated by Hagop Toghramadjian (Harvard Law School Advocates for Human Rights).