Azeri president hopes for progress in Karabakh talks

ANS TV, Baku
28 Jun 05

[Presenter] We are pinning hopes on the Karabakh talks, President
Ilham Aliyev has said in an interview with CNN-Turk television.
Aliyev stressed that Armenians had no way out.

[Aliyev speaking to a CNN-Turk correspondent in Azeri] We have hopes.
We may talk about any progress when we agree on something. But we
have hopes because processes going on in the world are not in favour
of Armenians. The political landscape is changing in the region.
Azerbaijan, as part of the Euro-Atlantic area, maintains very close
ties with the EU and the USA.

Armenia is pursuing a different policy. Armenia’s allies are different.

Armenia cannot compete with us in terms of economic potential. It is
not possible. Today, our budget is four times larger than theirs. I
have set the government the goal that our budget should be 10 times
larger than the Armenian. And we will achieve this.

Their aggressive policies are already being condemned by international
organizations. The Council of Europe has adopted a resolution saying
that Armenia has committed aggression against Azerbaijan and is
pursuing a policy of ethnic cleansing. I mean, they have no other
way out.

[Turkish correspondent] Do you mean that the developments in this
struggle are in favour of Azerbaijan and there will be results?

[Aliyev] That’s right. So, we have to strengthen our positions. Our
alliance with Turkey and other regional countries is very
important to us. For instance, today we are working on the
Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Baku railway [project]. Georgia, Turkey
and Azerbaijan are turning into powers in the region – into very
important powers.

So, I have no doubts that we will resolve this issue [Karabakh
problem]. I just want us to do this without any bloodshed, peacefully.