Azeri MPs happy about cancellation of NATO war games

Turan news agency
14 Sep 04

Baku, 14 September: The cancellation of NATO’s Cooperative Best
Effort 2004 exercises in Azerbaijan was discussed at the Milli Maclis
[parliament] session today.

MP Ibrahim Isayev was the first to speak on the issue. He expressed
his regret at the fact that NATO was led by the nose by the Armenians
and had cancelled the exercises in Baku.

“At the same time, we have succeeded in barring Armenians from Baku,
so let me congratulate you on that,” the MP said.

Qudrat Hasanquliyev, chairman of the United People’s Front of
Azerbaijan Party, described what happened as a “major achievement”.

“Our people have shown their unity,” he said with satisfaction.

Hasanquliyev called on everyone to be “on alert” to the people and
companies maintaining “contacts” with Armenia, saying that such
cooperation was unacceptable.

At the same time, MP Musa Musayev expressed his doubt that the
disruption of the NATO exercises was a positive achievement. He
recalled that a great deal of effort was taken by Azerbaijan to become
an associated member of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. If Azerbaijan
is aspiring to a negotiated solution to the Karabakh problem, it has
to cooperate with NATO, Musayev said.

Parliament Speaker Murtuz Alasgarov said summing up the debate that
in some sense the NATO decision was an answer to the Azerbaijani
parliament’s address.

“We protested at the visit of those who have occupied our lands and
shed the blood of our people, and we have achieved our goal,” he said.

[Passage to end omitted: parliament session’s agenda]

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress