Pope Leo XIV Meets Azerbaijan Deputy Prime Minister While Christian Heritage Burns

Vatican City - Pope Leo XIV recently received Azerbaijan's Deputy Prime Minister in an official audience at the Vatican, continuing the Holy See's controversial relationship with the Muslim-majority nation accused of systematic cultural genocide against Armenian Christians.

The Vatican has maintained diplomatic relations with Azerbaijan since 1992. Relations between Azerbaijan and the Holy See began in 1992, after it gained its independence from the Soviet Union. Pope John Paul II was the first pontiff to visit the country in 2002, which helped gain recognition for the Catholic community there.

Pope Francis visited Baku in 2016, where he praised Azerbaijan as an example "that among followers of different religious confessions, cordial relations, respect and cooperation for the common good are possible."

The Azerbaijan donations flow through the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, run by Azerbaijan's first lady, Mehriban Aliyeva, who is also the vice president of the country. In February 2020, she was awarded the highest civilian honor offered by the Holy See, the Papal Order of Knighthood of Pope Pius IX, just months before the country launched one of its efforts to capture Nagorno-Karabakh.

Since 2009, the Heydar Aliyev Foundation has funded various activities in the Vatican including restoration projects, exhibitions and concerts. Other projects funded by Azerbaijan included the Roman catacombs, the Vatican Museums, the Vatican Apostolic Library and Catholic churches in France and Azerbaijan. These donations amount to one million euros.

In September 2024, the Governorate of Vatican City State and the Heydar Aliyev Foundation signed an agreement for restoration works at the Papal Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls in preparation for Jubilee 2025. The Heydar Aliyev Foundation of Azerbaijan and the Governorate sign an Agreement, titled, “The Basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls - Jubilee 2025"

Meanwhile, evidence mounts of Azerbaijan's systematic destruction of Armenian Christian heritage. Caucasus Heritage Watch documented with satellite imagery at least 110 out of 127 (98%) Armenian culture heritage sites, including churches, monasteries, schools, and monuments, which have been totally destroyed, damaged, or threatened. Current Situation in Artsakh – Armenian Bar Association

Churches damaged or destroyed include Meghretsots Holy Mother of God Church, the seventh-century Vankasar Church in Tigranakert, St. John's Cathedral of the Mother of God in Stepanakert, and Ghazanchetsots Cathedral in Shushi, with multiple religious symbols removed from the church, including the unique angels on the building's gate, the domes of the church, and the cathedral's cross.

Caucasus Heritage Watch reported that the 177-year-old St Hovhannes Mkrtich church in Shusha was completely destroyed between December 2023 and April 2024, calling it the most "egregious violation yet" of a December International Court of Justice order obliging Azerbaijan to take "all necessary measures to prevent and punish acts of vandalism and desecration affecting Armenian cultural heritage."

In September 2023, 120,000 Christian Armenians were forced out of their homes, churches and neighborhoods in Nagorno-Karabakh after a nine-month blockade without food, heat and electricity.

Azerbaijan's efforts to coax Western alliances through generous donations and lavish gifts has been dubbed by critics as "caviar diplomacy."

"The Vatican has been receiving money from Azerbaijan for some time," said Orthodox Archbishop Vicken Aykazian of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America.

THE CRUSADERS OPINION

The Vatican sold Armenian Christians for restoration money. This is spiritual prostitution.

Azerbaijan systematically destroys 98% of Armenian churches while the Pope shakes hands with their leaders.

One hundred ten ancient Christian sites obliterated.

Monasteries demolished. Crosses torn from cathedrals. One hundred twenty thousand Christians ethnically cleansed.

The International Court of Justice orders Azerbaijan to stop cultural genocide. Azerbaijan ignores the court and razes a 177-year-old church four months later.

The Vatican's response? Sign another funding agreement and roll out red carpets for Azerbaijan's dictator's wife, awarding her the Church's highest civilian honor months before Azerbaijan launches military operations.

This isn't diplomacy.

This is betrayal. This moral cowardice shames Christendom.

Every destroyed Armenian church indicts Vatican leadership for valuing restoration funds over defending persecuted believers.

When accounting before God, will the Vatican explain that Sistine Chapel repairs justified abandoning Armenian Christians to Islamic erasure?

Take Action: Demand Vatican Accountability

European Centre for Law & Justice: https://eclj.org

Caucasus Heritage Watch: Track ongoing destruction at Cornell and Purdue Universities' research initiative

Demand:

• Vatican return Azerbaijan's donations and condemn cultural genocide publicly
• International prosecution for Azerbaijan's systematic destruction of Christian heritage
• Protection and right of return for 120,000 displaced Armenian Christians
• Enforcement of International Court of Justice orders against Azerbaijan

Pray for Armenian Christians and for Church leaders to value souls over silver.