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Azerbaijan says will face Russian soldiers in Karabakh in case of war
http://www.news.az/articles/politics/77445
Mon 04 March 2013 10:09 GMT | 10:09 Local Time
News.Az reprints from Today's Zaman article "Azerbaijan says will face
Russian soldiers in Karabakh in case of war" by Celil Sagir.
The Azerbaijani government has stated that if Baku chooses to settle
the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict via wide-scale military operations, it
will face Russian soldiers rather than Armenian, its neighboring
country which currently controls occupied Azerbaijani territories.
`President Ilham Aliyev has always promised a military solution to the
[Nagorno-Karabakh] conflict and he still has the issue on the agenda.
The option of a military solution is always on the table, but the most
important thing is how this kind of operation will be carried out. We
need to become much stronger so that if we become involved in combat
in Nagorno-Karabakh we can stand up to Russian troops, because that is
who we will have to face. Did Armenia occupy our territories? Do you
think Armenia's power is sufficient for that?' asked Ali Hasanov,
Azerbaijan's deputy prime minister, in a press conference held with a
group of Turkish reporters in the capital city of Baku.
Recalling his home city, which is also in the occupied territories of
Azerbaijan, Hasanov said the occupation was accomplished with the
military support of Russia. `I saw Russian soldiers get out of tanks
and celebrate their victory with champagne.'
Russia is considered the dominant power in the region, seeking to
preserve its influence over its former republics and, in particular,
the South Caucasus. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia has
attempted to manipulate the region through protracted conflicts,
including Nagorno-Karabakh, a territorial conflict between Azerbaijan
and Armenia that still remains unsettled.
Azerbaijan lost 20 percent of its territories as a result of the
bloody war over Nagorno-Karabakh in the early 1990s, prompting Turkey
to close its border with neighboring Armenia in a sign of solidarity
with its ally Azerbaijan. Turkey's isolation of Armenia has
subsequently pushed Armenia toward Russia.
Moscow and Yerevan signed a mutual security agreement and Russia is
known to be backing Armenia militarily, as its only ally in the
region.
While Azerbaijan is developing in economic terms and translating its
economic might into military muscle, Russia continues to pursue its
policy of domination over Armenia through its notorious economic
leverage.
According to diplomatic sources, following the government change in
Georgia, a neighboring country that also acts as a buffer zone between
Armenia and Russia and as a transit country to deliver Caspian energy
resources to Europe, Baku became concerned, as newly elected Georgian
Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili is reported to be closer to Russia
rather than the Western powers President Mikhail Saakashvili is known
to be close to.
Moreover, Baku is very concerned about Iran's position in the region,
as Tehran is easing the blockade of Armenia by lending a helping hand
to Yerevan. Azerbaijan keeps Armenia out of regional projects as part
of its policy to keep Yerevan under economic blockade in a bid to push
its adversary abandon its intransigent position over the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
`If Tehran breaks its ties with Armenia, Yerevan will die of hunger,'
Hasanov said to Today's Zaman.
Commenting on the Turkish-Armenian rapprochement process that is
currently deadlocked, Hasanov expressed Baku's pleasure with the
Turkish position in the region. Noting Turkish support for Azerbaijan,
especially in the solution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Hasanov
recalled the speech of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an in which he
said Turkey will never open its borders with Armenia until the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is settled.
According to Ferhad Memmedov, chief of Baku-based Center for Strategic
Research (SAM) under the office of the Azerbaijani president, Turkey
is not expected put the idea of opening its borders with Armenia into
play in a bid to defuse the pressure of Armenians across the world as
they plan to mark the 100th anniversary of the 1915 mass killings in
two years.
Memmedov argues that opening the borders with Armenia will not push
the strong Armenian lobby to abandon their cause seeking recognition
of the so-called genocide and instead will bury the chance for
Armenians to make any concessions in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
While Baku is not optimistic for the peace talks held under the
auspices of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
(OSCE) Minsk Group between Armenia and Azerbaijan for nearly two
decades, neither does it want to abandon the negotiations.
Hasanov complained about the structure of the Minsk Group, which he
said has not functioned properly for 20 years. According to Hasanov, a
change in the format used by the mediators could keep the conflicting
sides busy for another 20 years, similar to the Palestinian and
Kashmir problems.
Hasanov said it is impossible to include any of the Turkic republics
among the three co-chairs of the 15-member Minsk Group since decisions
in the mediating group are taken based on consensus. He also
criticized the fact that no Muslim nation is co-chairing the group and
that all of them are Christian nations. `On the one hand, we are
criticizing the Minsk Group, but on the other hand, we don't leave
it,' Hasanov added.
Hasanov believes the US holds the key to the solution of the
Nagorno-Karabakh: `If the US wants to find the solution to this
problem, it should sit down with Russia and solve it. If it cannot do
it, then it should take Armenia out of Russia's orbit.'
Hasanov claimed that Washington does not want to damage ties with
Russia and won't do what it has done in Georgia. He was referring to
steadfast US support for Georgia during the 2008 war with Russia.
Criticizing the international community for remaining silent on
Armenia, Hasanov said Armenia, occupying 20 percent of Azerbaijani
territory, also has territorial claims in Georgia and Turkey.
Hasanov claimed that Armenians are training terror groups and
dispatching them to conflict zones in occupied territories, adding
that they are also growing and selling drugs. `The entire
international community is aware of this fact.'
News.Az
http://www.news.az/articles/politics/77445
Mon 04 March 2013 10:09 GMT | 10:09 Local Time
News.Az reprints from Today's Zaman article "Azerbaijan says will face
Russian soldiers in Karabakh in case of war" by Celil Sagir.
The Azerbaijani government has stated that if Baku chooses to settle
the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict via wide-scale military operations, it
will face Russian soldiers rather than Armenian, its neighboring
country which currently controls occupied Azerbaijani territories.
`President Ilham Aliyev has always promised a military solution to the
[Nagorno-Karabakh] conflict and he still has the issue on the agenda.
The option of a military solution is always on the table, but the most
important thing is how this kind of operation will be carried out. We
need to become much stronger so that if we become involved in combat
in Nagorno-Karabakh we can stand up to Russian troops, because that is
who we will have to face. Did Armenia occupy our territories? Do you
think Armenia's power is sufficient for that?' asked Ali Hasanov,
Azerbaijan's deputy prime minister, in a press conference held with a
group of Turkish reporters in the capital city of Baku.
Recalling his home city, which is also in the occupied territories of
Azerbaijan, Hasanov said the occupation was accomplished with the
military support of Russia. `I saw Russian soldiers get out of tanks
and celebrate their victory with champagne.'
Russia is considered the dominant power in the region, seeking to
preserve its influence over its former republics and, in particular,
the South Caucasus. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia has
attempted to manipulate the region through protracted conflicts,
including Nagorno-Karabakh, a territorial conflict between Azerbaijan
and Armenia that still remains unsettled.
Azerbaijan lost 20 percent of its territories as a result of the
bloody war over Nagorno-Karabakh in the early 1990s, prompting Turkey
to close its border with neighboring Armenia in a sign of solidarity
with its ally Azerbaijan. Turkey's isolation of Armenia has
subsequently pushed Armenia toward Russia.
Moscow and Yerevan signed a mutual security agreement and Russia is
known to be backing Armenia militarily, as its only ally in the
region.
While Azerbaijan is developing in economic terms and translating its
economic might into military muscle, Russia continues to pursue its
policy of domination over Armenia through its notorious economic
leverage.
According to diplomatic sources, following the government change in
Georgia, a neighboring country that also acts as a buffer zone between
Armenia and Russia and as a transit country to deliver Caspian energy
resources to Europe, Baku became concerned, as newly elected Georgian
Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili is reported to be closer to Russia
rather than the Western powers President Mikhail Saakashvili is known
to be close to.
Moreover, Baku is very concerned about Iran's position in the region,
as Tehran is easing the blockade of Armenia by lending a helping hand
to Yerevan. Azerbaijan keeps Armenia out of regional projects as part
of its policy to keep Yerevan under economic blockade in a bid to push
its adversary abandon its intransigent position over the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
`If Tehran breaks its ties with Armenia, Yerevan will die of hunger,'
Hasanov said to Today's Zaman.
Commenting on the Turkish-Armenian rapprochement process that is
currently deadlocked, Hasanov expressed Baku's pleasure with the
Turkish position in the region. Noting Turkish support for Azerbaijan,
especially in the solution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Hasanov
recalled the speech of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an in which he
said Turkey will never open its borders with Armenia until the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is settled.
According to Ferhad Memmedov, chief of Baku-based Center for Strategic
Research (SAM) under the office of the Azerbaijani president, Turkey
is not expected put the idea of opening its borders with Armenia into
play in a bid to defuse the pressure of Armenians across the world as
they plan to mark the 100th anniversary of the 1915 mass killings in
two years.
Memmedov argues that opening the borders with Armenia will not push
the strong Armenian lobby to abandon their cause seeking recognition
of the so-called genocide and instead will bury the chance for
Armenians to make any concessions in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
While Baku is not optimistic for the peace talks held under the
auspices of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
(OSCE) Minsk Group between Armenia and Azerbaijan for nearly two
decades, neither does it want to abandon the negotiations.
Hasanov complained about the structure of the Minsk Group, which he
said has not functioned properly for 20 years. According to Hasanov, a
change in the format used by the mediators could keep the conflicting
sides busy for another 20 years, similar to the Palestinian and
Kashmir problems.
Hasanov said it is impossible to include any of the Turkic republics
among the three co-chairs of the 15-member Minsk Group since decisions
in the mediating group are taken based on consensus. He also
criticized the fact that no Muslim nation is co-chairing the group and
that all of them are Christian nations. `On the one hand, we are
criticizing the Minsk Group, but on the other hand, we don't leave
it,' Hasanov added.
Hasanov believes the US holds the key to the solution of the
Nagorno-Karabakh: `If the US wants to find the solution to this
problem, it should sit down with Russia and solve it. If it cannot do
it, then it should take Armenia out of Russia's orbit.'
Hasanov claimed that Washington does not want to damage ties with
Russia and won't do what it has done in Georgia. He was referring to
steadfast US support for Georgia during the 2008 war with Russia.
Criticizing the international community for remaining silent on
Armenia, Hasanov said Armenia, occupying 20 percent of Azerbaijani
territory, also has territorial claims in Georgia and Turkey.
Hasanov claimed that Armenians are training terror groups and
dispatching them to conflict zones in occupied territories, adding
that they are also growing and selling drugs. `The entire
international community is aware of this fact.'
News.Az