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AZERBAIJAN -- MUCH MORE THAN A GAS STATION
by Amanda Paul
Today's Zaman
http://www.todayszaman.com/columnist-260218-azerbaijan----much-more-than-a-gas-station.html
Oct 18 2011
Turkey
Sitting on Baku's Boulevard, drinking hot Azerbaijani tea with the
traditional saucer of jam, gazing out over the beautiful Caspian
Sea, while in the background brand new buildings blend with old,
traditional architecture, it is hard not to be impressed.
Yesterday, on Oct. 18, Azerbaijan celebrated 20 years of independence.
While the first Republic of Azerbaijan was actually formed in May
1918, its existence was short-lived, being destroyed by the arrival
of Bolshevism in the country in April 1920. In its place came the
Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic. Seventy-one years later, the
Soviet chains were finally broken, and the Republic of Azerbaijan
was reborn.
Azerbaijan is rich in many things, most notably oil and gas. Once upon
a time, Baku's citizens used to scoop up the oil from the ground with
their bare hands, such was its abundance. Nowadays, while there are
still copious amounts of natural resources, with new oil and gas fields
continuing to be found, its extraction is done rather differently. Yet
on the outskirts of Baku flames continue to shoot out from a hillside
on the Absheron Peninsula, known as Yanar Dag (fire mountain).
While oil derricks are still dotted around Baku and gas platforms
can be spotted on the sea, Azerbaijan is much more than a "filling
station" for the West. Winner of the Eurovision song contest in 2011,
bidding to become a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council,
and angling to host the 2016 summer Olympics, Azerbaijan is a country
of growing self confidence and increasing geostrategic importance. A
key ally of the West in the fight against terrorism, Azerbaijan is one
of the few countries straddling Europe and Asia, being integrated in
the political structures of both continents. A member of the Council
of Europe, part of the EU's European Neighbourhood Policy (negotiating
an association agreement), a member of NATO's Partnership for Peace
program and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
(OSCE), Azerbaijan also plays an active role in the Organization of
Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Economic Cooperation Organization
(ECO).
Indeed, over the past 20 years Azerbaijan has become the leading power
in the Transcaucasia region and had the fastest growing economy for a
number of years. Moreover, Azerbaijan is presently the only westward
route from the Caspian, breaking Russia's monopoly to world export
markets with the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) and Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum
(BTE) oil and gas pipelines, transporting 1 million barrels of oil
per day and 6.6 billion cubic meters of gas per year, respectively,
and is the lynchpin for the EU's Southern Energy Corridor.
And while Azerbaijan shares much with its neighbor Turkey,
Azerbaijanis also have their own distinct identity and character,
with a strong Iranian, Russian, European and Caucasian heritage that
sets it apart from its neighbor. Azerbaijanis have always felt proud
of being slightly different to Turks, having had a more progressive
society due to higher literacy rates, more profound secularization
and higher levels of female emancipation. They take pride in being
the home of the first secular democratic republic, first theater play
and first opera in the Muslim world -- these facts are indispensable
for understanding their self-perception.
However, as was the case with many of the other countries of the
former Soviet Union, Azerbaijan's transformation has not been easy.
The fall of the Soviet Union left Azerbaijan's economy in tatters
and at war with neighbor Armenia over the internationally recognized
Azerbaijani territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, which has had a majority
ethnic Armenian population in more recent times. The war, which lasted
until 1994, resulted in Armenia taking control of Nagorno-Karabakh,
as well as occupying seven additional Azerbaijani territories.
Moreover, the war left around 1 million people internally displaced.
Almost 800,000 of these were Azerbaijanis and Baku faced a major
humanitarian crisis. While nobody is denying that thousands of
Armenians also suffered terribly during this period, they were
fortunate enough to receive a substantial amount of support and
financial assistance from around the world, not least as a result of
Armenia's sizeable diaspora. Azerbaijan, on the other hand, was wrongly
portrayed as an aggressor and left to deal with its humanitarian crisis
almost by itself. The US placed sanctions on Azerbaijan under Section
907a of the Freedom Support Act and prohibited any kind of direct
US government assistance to the Azerbaijani government. Although
successive US presidents denounced it, none have been able to get
Congress to repeal it. It was finally waived on a year-by-year basis
following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
Today, some 20 years on, the four UN resolutions requesting Armenia to
remove its soldiers from Azerbaijani territories remain unimplemented.
The international community has never taken any serious steps to
have them enforced and ordinary Azerbaijanis feel let down and
disappointed by the West as a result. Peace negotiations have been
going on since the cease-fire was signed in 1994 but have so far
failed to bring about a solution. Lives continue to be lost, with
the cease-fire being violated on a daily basis. While nobody wants a
new war, bellicose statements and saber-rattling from both sides risk
exactly that. For Azerbaijan, there is no question that Karabakh must
remain as part of their territory. Armenia insists on the opposite,
and so the status quo remains.
From: Baghdasarian
by Amanda Paul
Today's Zaman
http://www.todayszaman.com/columnist-260218-azerbaijan----much-more-than-a-gas-station.html
Oct 18 2011
Turkey
Sitting on Baku's Boulevard, drinking hot Azerbaijani tea with the
traditional saucer of jam, gazing out over the beautiful Caspian
Sea, while in the background brand new buildings blend with old,
traditional architecture, it is hard not to be impressed.
Yesterday, on Oct. 18, Azerbaijan celebrated 20 years of independence.
While the first Republic of Azerbaijan was actually formed in May
1918, its existence was short-lived, being destroyed by the arrival
of Bolshevism in the country in April 1920. In its place came the
Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic. Seventy-one years later, the
Soviet chains were finally broken, and the Republic of Azerbaijan
was reborn.
Azerbaijan is rich in many things, most notably oil and gas. Once upon
a time, Baku's citizens used to scoop up the oil from the ground with
their bare hands, such was its abundance. Nowadays, while there are
still copious amounts of natural resources, with new oil and gas fields
continuing to be found, its extraction is done rather differently. Yet
on the outskirts of Baku flames continue to shoot out from a hillside
on the Absheron Peninsula, known as Yanar Dag (fire mountain).
While oil derricks are still dotted around Baku and gas platforms
can be spotted on the sea, Azerbaijan is much more than a "filling
station" for the West. Winner of the Eurovision song contest in 2011,
bidding to become a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council,
and angling to host the 2016 summer Olympics, Azerbaijan is a country
of growing self confidence and increasing geostrategic importance. A
key ally of the West in the fight against terrorism, Azerbaijan is one
of the few countries straddling Europe and Asia, being integrated in
the political structures of both continents. A member of the Council
of Europe, part of the EU's European Neighbourhood Policy (negotiating
an association agreement), a member of NATO's Partnership for Peace
program and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
(OSCE), Azerbaijan also plays an active role in the Organization of
Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Economic Cooperation Organization
(ECO).
Indeed, over the past 20 years Azerbaijan has become the leading power
in the Transcaucasia region and had the fastest growing economy for a
number of years. Moreover, Azerbaijan is presently the only westward
route from the Caspian, breaking Russia's monopoly to world export
markets with the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) and Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum
(BTE) oil and gas pipelines, transporting 1 million barrels of oil
per day and 6.6 billion cubic meters of gas per year, respectively,
and is the lynchpin for the EU's Southern Energy Corridor.
And while Azerbaijan shares much with its neighbor Turkey,
Azerbaijanis also have their own distinct identity and character,
with a strong Iranian, Russian, European and Caucasian heritage that
sets it apart from its neighbor. Azerbaijanis have always felt proud
of being slightly different to Turks, having had a more progressive
society due to higher literacy rates, more profound secularization
and higher levels of female emancipation. They take pride in being
the home of the first secular democratic republic, first theater play
and first opera in the Muslim world -- these facts are indispensable
for understanding their self-perception.
However, as was the case with many of the other countries of the
former Soviet Union, Azerbaijan's transformation has not been easy.
The fall of the Soviet Union left Azerbaijan's economy in tatters
and at war with neighbor Armenia over the internationally recognized
Azerbaijani territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, which has had a majority
ethnic Armenian population in more recent times. The war, which lasted
until 1994, resulted in Armenia taking control of Nagorno-Karabakh,
as well as occupying seven additional Azerbaijani territories.
Moreover, the war left around 1 million people internally displaced.
Almost 800,000 of these were Azerbaijanis and Baku faced a major
humanitarian crisis. While nobody is denying that thousands of
Armenians also suffered terribly during this period, they were
fortunate enough to receive a substantial amount of support and
financial assistance from around the world, not least as a result of
Armenia's sizeable diaspora. Azerbaijan, on the other hand, was wrongly
portrayed as an aggressor and left to deal with its humanitarian crisis
almost by itself. The US placed sanctions on Azerbaijan under Section
907a of the Freedom Support Act and prohibited any kind of direct
US government assistance to the Azerbaijani government. Although
successive US presidents denounced it, none have been able to get
Congress to repeal it. It was finally waived on a year-by-year basis
following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
Today, some 20 years on, the four UN resolutions requesting Armenia to
remove its soldiers from Azerbaijani territories remain unimplemented.
The international community has never taken any serious steps to
have them enforced and ordinary Azerbaijanis feel let down and
disappointed by the West as a result. Peace negotiations have been
going on since the cease-fire was signed in 1994 but have so far
failed to bring about a solution. Lives continue to be lost, with
the cease-fire being violated on a daily basis. While nobody wants a
new war, bellicose statements and saber-rattling from both sides risk
exactly that. For Azerbaijan, there is no question that Karabakh must
remain as part of their territory. Armenia insists on the opposite,
and so the status quo remains.
From: Baghdasarian