Jean-François Mancel, born on March 1, 1948, is the former president of the Association des Amis de l'Azerbaïdjan, which he chaired between 2014 and October 2021, before handing over to former Les Républicains MP Jérôme Lambert.
His long political career - he was General Councillor for the Oise department, Member of the European Parliament, President of the Oise General Council, then a UMP/LR deputy in the French National Assembly for a total of over 25 years - has given him a prime status for relaying Ilham Aliyev's propaganda in France. A former supporter of Nicolas Sarkozy until the LR party primaries in 2016, he completed his last term as a deputy in 2017.
Jean-François Mancel is one of the strongest supporters of the Azerbaijani dictatorship in France. For decades, he has campaigned for improved relations between France and Azerbaijan, and to this end has published numerous tribunes, such as in 2014 in Le Monde, “Apprenons à connaître l'Azerbaïdjan” (“Let's get to know Azerbaijan”).
He is an outspoken supporter of Ilham Aliyev's regime, publicly denying its authoritarian nature and praising its policy of tolerance, hence his strong opposition in 2016 to the National Assembly's creation of a commission of inquiry into bilateral relations between France and Azerbaijan.
Also in 2016, he welcomed Mehriban Aliyeva's delegation to Paris, and was himself invited to Baku by Ilham Aliyev in 2018 and November 2020.
In 2017, he even testified on behalf of Azerbaijan in the trial between the dictatorship and Elise Lucet following the release of Cash Investigation's investigation into Azerbaijan.
Jean-François Mancel still frequents the Azerbaijani embassy with his wife Brigitte Mancel, and in February 2023 he attended the General Assembly of the Association des Amis de l'Azerbaïdjan, continuing his activities for the pro-Azerbaijani lobby.
Azerbaijan uses all available means and relays to silence its wars and crimes.
