Azerbaijan pardons French national jailed for spying

The move comes after the EU lifts sanctions on oligarchs following what diplomats described as pressure from Baku.Published On 23 Sep 202623 Sep 2026Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev has pardoned Martin Ryan, a French national who was serving a 10-year prison sentence on spying charges.The move on Wednesday came a day after the European Union lifted sanctions on Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov following what diplomats described as pressure exerted by Baku.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Central African Republic charges French national with espionagelist 2 of 3Video: Azerbaijan’s ruling dynastylist 3 of 3What does Armenia’s future look like?end of listRyan, who was arrested in 2023 and sentenced in March, was among 20 people pardoned by Aliyev’s office, alongside Azerbaijani, Turkish, Russian-Israeli and Pakistani nationals, Reuters news agency reported.Aliyev’s website said the president took into account their “personalities, state of health, family circumstances” and other reasons in deciding to grant pardons.France welcomed “with relief the decision to grant clemency” to Ryan, calling it “a humanitarian gesture”, according to a French Ministry of Foreign Affa...