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ELMAN ABDULLAYEV: "PEACEFUL COEXISTENCE OF TWO COMMUNITIES ON ONE TERRITORY IS THE ONLY TRUE PATH TO GENERAL PEACE IN THE REGION"
Vestnik Kavkaza
March 22 2012
Russia
Interview by Elmira Tariverdiyeva, exclusively to VK
The official representative of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry,
Elman Abdullayev, comments on the major trends of Azeri foreign policy.
- How would you characterize current Russian-Azeri relations?
- The level of these relations is very high for today, this
relationship can be called strategic partnership. Baku and Moscow have
constructed a mutually beneficial relationship in all possible spheres,
and this relationship is developing. A lot of official visits are being
made, including high-level visits. Russian and Azerbaijani experts
and journalists have a high level of cooperation. One can't pass up
the exclusive role of Russia in the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict. Both states are interested in further development of their
relationship in all spheres. Just recently the states finished the
process of demarcation of their border-line - and it is a great
success, as the process lasted for quite a long while.
Of course, some issues remain, but they are technical and will be
resolved soon. The issue of the two villages that are situated on
Azeri territory but are populated with people from Dagestan is also
being resolved at state level, and now it is up to the residents of
these villages - they can live wherever they choose.
Today the number of spheres of Russian-Azeri cooperation is
increasing, and there are many issues on which Baku and Moscow agree
almost completely. We are interested in strengthening our bilateral
relations, and I think the newly-elected President, Mr Putin, will
guarantee that. And our states' relations are already on a level from
which only further progress is possible, no matter who is in power in
Russia. The trade turnover between the two states grows constantly,
the business communities of the countries have a rather high level
of cooperation and interaction. The level of cooperation between the
two states in the area of education is also pretty high.
- What can you say about the recent diplomatic successes of Azerbaijan?
- Azerbaijan is increasing its international influence, it participates
in many international organizations, like the UN Security Council, the
Non-Aligned Movement and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. The
recent meeting of Azerbaijani, Turkish and Iranian foreign ministers
that took place on Azeri soil in Nakhchivan demonstrated that Baku
attributes a great deal of attention to regional cooperation and
development. Recently Azerbaijan was invited as a special guest to
the G20 summit - and this is a great step forward for Azerbaijan.
Also, the Azerbaijani President was invited to the Seoul summit
related to nuclear issues. So Azerbaijan is evolving from a regional
leader to a strong international player. Azerbaijan is strengthening
its economic and military potential, which is natural for a state
20% of whose territory is occupied. Today Azeri foreign policy is
aimed at creating an image of a reliable and stable partner in the
global arena. The increasing role of Azerbaijan in the frameworks of
international organizations - the entrance to the UN Security Council,
the election of Azerbaijan to a number of leading positions in the
UNESCO organization - all this points to the fact that Azerbaijan's
position in the world is becoming stronger.
- How would you characterize the process of the Nagorno-Karabakh
settlement? And what's the role of Russia in this process?
- We all witnessed President's Medvedev attempt to become a personal
mediator between Azerbaijan and Armenia. We appreciate these efforts
highly and we hope this initiative will continue in the future. We also
hope that the OSCE Minsk Group will become more active - there is a
great need for that, as prolongation of the period of the conflict's
unresolved state touches upon all countries of the region. And this
conflict isn't 'frozen', as many think, while many powers regard it
from a position of double-standards.
The EU has to take a clear position regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh
issue. The world has to react to the fact that Yerevan ignores four
resolutions of UN Security Council that called for a withdrawal of
troops from occupied Azeri territories. It is most surprising, as we
see how quickly other resolutions of the Council are being carried out,
for example, the one on Libya.
The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has to be resolved, as if a war breaks
out in such an strategically important region, it would make the
whole South Caucasus vulnerable, and that can't leave our neighbors
indifferent. The danger of the conflict turning into a shooting war
should become a good motivation for the mediators, including the
Minsk Group co-chairs, to try to settle it as quickly as possible in
accordance with international law.
Today Azeri territories are still occupied and millions of Azeri
refugees can't return to their homes. This concerns the Azerbaijani
authorities, but the recent statement made by the Armenian President
shows that Armenia is negatively disposed. Armenia wants to maintain
the status-quo and tries to hamper the negotiation process. It seems
that Yerevan wants to shift the responsibility of aggressor onto
someone else, but it is Azeri territory that is being occupied by
Armenian troops, and not the other way around. Azerbaijan is very
concerned about the fact that the international community chooses to
ignore the violations of international laws by Armenia, as well as
important principles of international relations, such as a state's
right to territorial integrity. This principle is at the basis of the
current global system, all states exist thanks to it, so it can't be
ignored. Of course, we are not opposed to the right of a nation for
self-determination, but it still should be carried out for Karabakh
in the framework of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity. Azerbaijan is
ready to grant special status and wide autonomy to Karabakh Armenians.
However, all our suggestions were ignored by the Armenian authorities.
I think the international community should pay attention to the
attempts of Yerevan to create a second Armenian state. But it is
unacceptable to alter state borders by force in the 21st century. The
international community shouldn't remain inert. It is a positive
moment that the OSCE Minsk Group is monitoring the situation on
the border, but the lack of any positive results in 20 years is
almost a failure. The conflict can explode in any moment, and it is
a great danger to the region. We see how the conflict has affected
the development of the South Caucasus, even though Azerbaijan does
its best to ensure sustained development of the region. Azerbaijan's
economy has a direct influence on the economy of the region in general,
and 80% of the region's GDP is created by our country.
However, the conflict damages not only the general situation in the
region, but the economy of Armenia as well. Today's stagnation is
unprecedented. The country is also going through a demographic crisis -
80-90,000 people leave the country every year. The state's leadership
has to think, is it wise to drive the country into such a miserable
state by its ambitions. Today the main question is - does Yerevan have
the will to resolve the conflict? Unfortunately, today the Armenian
government is doing all in its power to maintain the status-quo.
But I think a final resolution of the conflict is inevitable, it
can't remain unresolved for long.
- What is the role of civil diplomacy in this settlement process?
Could Armenia's refusal to participate in the Eurovision contest be
regarded as a step back in the dialogue?
- We always believed in civil diplomacy, we believe it can be most
effective if both sides have the will. But unfortunately it seems that
the Armenian side doesn't have this will. We saw how Yerevan hampered
the meetings of Azeri and Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh communities'
representatives in Berlin and Paris. Azeri representatives came but
the Armenian side refused at the last moment. But of course such
meetings should take place. Azeri community representatives should
have an opportunity to come to Nagorno-Karabakh, to see their homes,
to honor the graves of their ancestors. They have this right and the
international community shouldn't idly stand by while this right
is being violated. We try to establish relations between the two
communities, but Armenia blocks these attempts as if it doesn't
understand that peaceful coexistence of two communities on one
territory is the only true path to general peace in the region.
Vestnik Kavkaza
March 22 2012
Russia
Interview by Elmira Tariverdiyeva, exclusively to VK
The official representative of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry,
Elman Abdullayev, comments on the major trends of Azeri foreign policy.
- How would you characterize current Russian-Azeri relations?
- The level of these relations is very high for today, this
relationship can be called strategic partnership. Baku and Moscow have
constructed a mutually beneficial relationship in all possible spheres,
and this relationship is developing. A lot of official visits are being
made, including high-level visits. Russian and Azerbaijani experts
and journalists have a high level of cooperation. One can't pass up
the exclusive role of Russia in the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict. Both states are interested in further development of their
relationship in all spheres. Just recently the states finished the
process of demarcation of their border-line - and it is a great
success, as the process lasted for quite a long while.
Of course, some issues remain, but they are technical and will be
resolved soon. The issue of the two villages that are situated on
Azeri territory but are populated with people from Dagestan is also
being resolved at state level, and now it is up to the residents of
these villages - they can live wherever they choose.
Today the number of spheres of Russian-Azeri cooperation is
increasing, and there are many issues on which Baku and Moscow agree
almost completely. We are interested in strengthening our bilateral
relations, and I think the newly-elected President, Mr Putin, will
guarantee that. And our states' relations are already on a level from
which only further progress is possible, no matter who is in power in
Russia. The trade turnover between the two states grows constantly,
the business communities of the countries have a rather high level
of cooperation and interaction. The level of cooperation between the
two states in the area of education is also pretty high.
- What can you say about the recent diplomatic successes of Azerbaijan?
- Azerbaijan is increasing its international influence, it participates
in many international organizations, like the UN Security Council, the
Non-Aligned Movement and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. The
recent meeting of Azerbaijani, Turkish and Iranian foreign ministers
that took place on Azeri soil in Nakhchivan demonstrated that Baku
attributes a great deal of attention to regional cooperation and
development. Recently Azerbaijan was invited as a special guest to
the G20 summit - and this is a great step forward for Azerbaijan.
Also, the Azerbaijani President was invited to the Seoul summit
related to nuclear issues. So Azerbaijan is evolving from a regional
leader to a strong international player. Azerbaijan is strengthening
its economic and military potential, which is natural for a state
20% of whose territory is occupied. Today Azeri foreign policy is
aimed at creating an image of a reliable and stable partner in the
global arena. The increasing role of Azerbaijan in the frameworks of
international organizations - the entrance to the UN Security Council,
the election of Azerbaijan to a number of leading positions in the
UNESCO organization - all this points to the fact that Azerbaijan's
position in the world is becoming stronger.
- How would you characterize the process of the Nagorno-Karabakh
settlement? And what's the role of Russia in this process?
- We all witnessed President's Medvedev attempt to become a personal
mediator between Azerbaijan and Armenia. We appreciate these efforts
highly and we hope this initiative will continue in the future. We also
hope that the OSCE Minsk Group will become more active - there is a
great need for that, as prolongation of the period of the conflict's
unresolved state touches upon all countries of the region. And this
conflict isn't 'frozen', as many think, while many powers regard it
from a position of double-standards.
The EU has to take a clear position regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh
issue. The world has to react to the fact that Yerevan ignores four
resolutions of UN Security Council that called for a withdrawal of
troops from occupied Azeri territories. It is most surprising, as we
see how quickly other resolutions of the Council are being carried out,
for example, the one on Libya.
The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has to be resolved, as if a war breaks
out in such an strategically important region, it would make the
whole South Caucasus vulnerable, and that can't leave our neighbors
indifferent. The danger of the conflict turning into a shooting war
should become a good motivation for the mediators, including the
Minsk Group co-chairs, to try to settle it as quickly as possible in
accordance with international law.
Today Azeri territories are still occupied and millions of Azeri
refugees can't return to their homes. This concerns the Azerbaijani
authorities, but the recent statement made by the Armenian President
shows that Armenia is negatively disposed. Armenia wants to maintain
the status-quo and tries to hamper the negotiation process. It seems
that Yerevan wants to shift the responsibility of aggressor onto
someone else, but it is Azeri territory that is being occupied by
Armenian troops, and not the other way around. Azerbaijan is very
concerned about the fact that the international community chooses to
ignore the violations of international laws by Armenia, as well as
important principles of international relations, such as a state's
right to territorial integrity. This principle is at the basis of the
current global system, all states exist thanks to it, so it can't be
ignored. Of course, we are not opposed to the right of a nation for
self-determination, but it still should be carried out for Karabakh
in the framework of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity. Azerbaijan is
ready to grant special status and wide autonomy to Karabakh Armenians.
However, all our suggestions were ignored by the Armenian authorities.
I think the international community should pay attention to the
attempts of Yerevan to create a second Armenian state. But it is
unacceptable to alter state borders by force in the 21st century. The
international community shouldn't remain inert. It is a positive
moment that the OSCE Minsk Group is monitoring the situation on
the border, but the lack of any positive results in 20 years is
almost a failure. The conflict can explode in any moment, and it is
a great danger to the region. We see how the conflict has affected
the development of the South Caucasus, even though Azerbaijan does
its best to ensure sustained development of the region. Azerbaijan's
economy has a direct influence on the economy of the region in general,
and 80% of the region's GDP is created by our country.
However, the conflict damages not only the general situation in the
region, but the economy of Armenia as well. Today's stagnation is
unprecedented. The country is also going through a demographic crisis -
80-90,000 people leave the country every year. The state's leadership
has to think, is it wise to drive the country into such a miserable
state by its ambitions. Today the main question is - does Yerevan have
the will to resolve the conflict? Unfortunately, today the Armenian
government is doing all in its power to maintain the status-quo.
But I think a final resolution of the conflict is inevitable, it
can't remain unresolved for long.
- What is the role of civil diplomacy in this settlement process?
Could Armenia's refusal to participate in the Eurovision contest be
regarded as a step back in the dialogue?
- We always believed in civil diplomacy, we believe it can be most
effective if both sides have the will. But unfortunately it seems that
the Armenian side doesn't have this will. We saw how Yerevan hampered
the meetings of Azeri and Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh communities'
representatives in Berlin and Paris. Azeri representatives came but
the Armenian side refused at the last moment. But of course such
meetings should take place. Azeri community representatives should
have an opportunity to come to Nagorno-Karabakh, to see their homes,
to honor the graves of their ancestors. They have this right and the
international community shouldn't idly stand by while this right
is being violated. We try to establish relations between the two
communities, but Armenia blocks these attempts as if it doesn't
understand that peaceful coexistence of two communities on one
territory is the only true path to general peace in the region.