AZERI OFFICIAL DISPLEASED WITH LACK OF WESTERN SUPPORT ON KARABAKH
ANS TV, Baku, in Azeri
31 Oct 2006
A senior presidential aide has hinted that Azerbaijan is disappointed
with the West, as the country has not got the help it expected from
Europe and the USA in the settlement of the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict.
Novruz Mammadov, the head of the foreign relations department of the
Presidential Executive Staff, said that despite Azerbaijan’s role in
carrying Caspian oil to the world markets, the country had not got
the support it deserved.
"Since the early years of independence, Azerbaijan has combined all its
efforts – political, economic, energy, cultural, etc. – to integrate
into Euro-Atlantic structures as quickly as possible," Mammadov told
the "Point of View" programme on commercial ANS TV on 31 October.
"Azerbaijan made enormous efforts in carrying hydrocarbons to the
world markets. But what did we get in return? Did we not deserve
help in at least one of our most difficult problems?… Could they
[Europe and the USA] not say that Azerbaijan is right and that its
territories have been occupied [by Armenia]?" Mammadov asked.
However, he added that Azerbaijan had not changed its strategic choice
to integrate into Europe and Euro-Atlantic organizations.