AZERBAIJAN HOPES FOR MORE COOPERATION WITH RUSSIA UNDER MEDVEDEV

Interfax News Agency
Russia & CIS
March 3, 2008
Russia

Azerbaijan intends to intensify cooperation with Russia during Dmitry
Medvedev’s presidency, Azeri Foreign Ministry spokesman Khazar Ibragim
told a briefing on Monday.

He [Medvedev] perfectly knows Azerbaijan. Relations between Russia and
Azerbaijan are at a high level, and we intend to use his presidency
to boost the level of our relations, Ibragim said.

Touching on cases of assaults on Azeri nationals in Russia, Ibragim
said that in some countries, including Russia, Azeris are treated
inhumanely.

But this attitude is not the policy of the state and is not endorsed
by the state. The Azeri and Russian leaderships are constantly in
contact over this issue, and Russian authorities, while condemning
every such case, are promising to take measures to do away with this
phenomenon, he said.

Besides Ibragim said, that Azerbaijan will not use the situation in
Armenia to secure its own interests.

"Azerbaijan does not interfere in other countries’ internal affairs,
this is not in line with our views and traditions. We believe all
processes occurring in Armenia are its internal affair," he said.

At the same time, Armenia is a country, which occupied part of
Azerbaijan’s territories, and the parties continue talks on the
Karabakh conflict, the diplomat said.

"Given these issues, we would not like the events occurring in
Armenia to impact the negotiating process. Armenia must take a more
constructive stand. Azerbaijan is not going to make use of this
situation in Armenia, and we want our neighbors to understand this
and treat us in the same way," Ibragim said.