Karabakh expert: "Azeri propaganda got a backlash from the world community"
Regnum, Russia
Aug. 25, 2006
A few days ago Azerbaijan told the UN, the OSCE and the CE that it is
ready to take part in the extinguishing of the fires over the Nagorno
Karabakh-controlled territories. Azeri FM Elmar Mammadyarov said
that involved in the operation might be the Azeri ecology and natural
resource and emergency ministries and international organizations.
How can one explain such a strange position? Until now the Azeri
authorities have objected pointblank to any joint activity with
Nagorno Karabakh.
"There is only one explanation to such a strange behavior – this is
required by the international community, who is gradually realizing
that the Nagorno Karabakh conflict cannot be resolved unless an
atmosphere of confidence is created between the conflicting sides,
first of all, Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan. Meanwhile, in the
last months Azerbaijan’s information policy on Nagorno-Karabakh and
the Armenian people, as a whole, has been extremely aggressive and
chauvinist, despite the mediators’ assurances that there will be
a breakthrough in the peace process this year. It is obvious that
Azerbaijan’s aggressiveness not just prevents any confidence building
but simply undermines the efforts of the international community,
especially, of the OSCE MG co-chairs," Karabakh political scientist
David Babayan says in a talk with REGNUM.
He says that the fires Baku is so much talking about were not caused
by Karabakh, but by a strong drought – the strongest in the last five
years. "There are no cultural monuments over those territories.
However, the logic of the Azeri propaganda machines is simple: the
more outrageous the lie is, the quicker people believe it. However,
nobody believed this lie. One proof is the report on the fires by
the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office Andrzej
Kasprzyk, who said that the fires were caused by unprecedented heat.
Azerbaijan’s reaction was quite rigid and even unethical. Some
apologies for patriots from top authorities began insulting Mr.
Kasprzyk. Here, I would like to rephrase the well-known proverb:
truth not only hurts but also maddens," says Babayan.
This notwithstanding, the Azeri propaganda has not only failed to
mislead the international community but has also received a very
negative reaction from it. "The international community refrained from
arguing with Azerbaijan, but advised it to start a joint program to
extinguish the fires – quite a painful decision for Azerbaijan.
That was an effective blow on Azerbaijan, who is now in quite a
delicate situation. The Azeri authorities will now have to tell
their people that they have to contact with ‘the separatists’ who
‘are destroying’ their cultural legacy," says Babayan.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
