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ISRAEL-AZERBAIJAN ARMS DEAL SIGNALS CLOSE TIES, WHILE RAISING TENSIONS WITH IRAN
ARMENPRESS
MARCH 2, 2012
YEREVAN
YEREVAN, MARCH 2, ARMENPRESS: Israeli defense officials confirmed
Sunday a deal to sell $1,6 billion in arms, including drones and
missile defense systems, to Azerbaijan, Armenpress reports citing
"ReporterNet.com".
The deal reflects the close relationship between Israel, which finds
itself increasingly isolated in an increasingly hostile region, and
Azerbaijan, which shares a border with Iran and is building up its
military capability in the midst of its own dispute with Armenia.
The news comes at a delicate time, with tensions flaring between
Israel and Iran dominate headlines and analysts warning that an
Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear facilities could spiral into a
regional conflict. Now, growing tensions between Iran and Azerbaijan
have created another cause for concern.
"This deal is not a surprise in a sense, in that Azerbaijan has
staked itself out as a sort of pro-Western power in the region,"
said Thomas de Waal, a senior associate in the Carnegie Endowment
for International Peace's Russia and Eurasia Program.
De Waal described Azerbaijan as a mainly Muslim country with a secular
government that must balance building strong ties with the United
States and Israel with steering clear of a conflict with Iran.
The main motivation for Azerbaijan to buy these weapons, he said, is
to intimidate Armenia in their ongoing conflict over Armenian-occupied
Nagorno-Karabakh, a disputed separatist region that is predominately
ethnic Armenian, but internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan.
"Azerbaijan is trying to build up its military because of this
conflict," said de Waal, adding that the country's military spending is
among the world's fastest-growing over the past five years. "In doing
this, they are looking for partners and training to professionalize
their army, which was really nothing 10 years ago. And so Israel is
obviously someone they can rely on to do that."
ARMENPRESS
MARCH 2, 2012
YEREVAN
YEREVAN, MARCH 2, ARMENPRESS: Israeli defense officials confirmed
Sunday a deal to sell $1,6 billion in arms, including drones and
missile defense systems, to Azerbaijan, Armenpress reports citing
"ReporterNet.com".
The deal reflects the close relationship between Israel, which finds
itself increasingly isolated in an increasingly hostile region, and
Azerbaijan, which shares a border with Iran and is building up its
military capability in the midst of its own dispute with Armenia.
The news comes at a delicate time, with tensions flaring between
Israel and Iran dominate headlines and analysts warning that an
Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear facilities could spiral into a
regional conflict. Now, growing tensions between Iran and Azerbaijan
have created another cause for concern.
"This deal is not a surprise in a sense, in that Azerbaijan has
staked itself out as a sort of pro-Western power in the region,"
said Thomas de Waal, a senior associate in the Carnegie Endowment
for International Peace's Russia and Eurasia Program.
De Waal described Azerbaijan as a mainly Muslim country with a secular
government that must balance building strong ties with the United
States and Israel with steering clear of a conflict with Iran.
The main motivation for Azerbaijan to buy these weapons, he said, is
to intimidate Armenia in their ongoing conflict over Armenian-occupied
Nagorno-Karabakh, a disputed separatist region that is predominately
ethnic Armenian, but internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan.
"Azerbaijan is trying to build up its military because of this
conflict," said de Waal, adding that the country's military spending is
among the world's fastest-growing over the past five years. "In doing
this, they are looking for partners and training to professionalize
their army, which was really nothing 10 years ago. And so Israel is
obviously someone they can rely on to do that."