Today.Az, Azerbaijan
June 7 2008

Vafa Quluzade: "Russia will bother Azerbaijan with contacts with
Karabakh revenging for our pro-Western orientation"

07 June 2008 [11:19] – Today.Az

Day.Az interview with Vafa Quluzade, political scientist, former State
adviser of Azerbaijan on external political issues.

– Russian ambassador to Azerbaijan Vasili Istratov openly recognized
the fact of illegal conclusion of an agreement on cooperation of
Russia with one of the cities in Nagorno Karabakh. Before that, the
press published information hinting on Russian claims for two
Azerbaijani villages, bordering Russia. What is behind it:
incompetence of the Russian diplomat, if speaking about Istratov’s
statement or Russia’s intention to develop "Georgian script" in the
relation to Azerbaijan, trying to stake on separatism?

– This proves that Russia will toughen its attitude towards
Azerbaijan. Moscow is outraged by Azerbaijan’s continuation of its
Western orientation and strengthening of cooperation with NATO and
Moscow feels that this will end in our country’s accession to the
alliance.

Moreover, Russia is angry with Azerbaijan for agreeing to take part in
the Nabucco gas pipe project, which is bypassing Russia. As you know,
Russia offered Azerbaijan to give it all Azerbaijani gas, but
Azerbaijan rejected the offer. The President of Turkmenistan, who
refused to received head of Gazprom Miller, demonstrated that
Ashkhabad and Baku will participate in this project of gas
transportation bypassing Russia.

– What about the coming visit of new president of Russia D.Medvedev to
Azerbaijan on July 3-4, which is assessed by the head of the
Azerbaijani state as an indicator of high level of relations between
the two countries?

– This is why Medvedev wants to visit Azerbaijan and after it
Turkmenistan.

Russians will try to demonstrate its negative attitude to Azerbaijan
by using Nagorno Karabakh. They will establish cooperation between
Karabakh and different cities of Russia, hold visit of officials an
unofficial persons to Karabakh and threaten to Azerbaijan by
repetition of the Kosovo variant and recognition of Nagorno Karabakh’s
independence.

But I would say at once that Russia is not America. Russia will not be
able to provide independence of Nagorno Karabakh, as Americans did for
Kosovo, because Kosovo is striving for the European Union and NATO and
gets aid of the strongest super state-the United States, while Russia
itself is a developing country and it can not do anything for Armenia
or Nagorno Karabakh.

– But the relations between Azerbaijan and Russia are far from those,
we currently observe between Moscow and Georgia. Why does Russia need
new enemies by striving for recognition of the separatist regime in
Nagorno Karabakh?

– Russia will not do it. It will threaten to us, but it does not mean
that it will recognize it. Moscow will try to stake on this factor and
impose political pressure on the Azerbaijani leadership. But the
Azerbaijani leadership is too self-confident.

– So, nothing should be expected from the first meeting of the
President of Azerbaijan and Armenia, held in Saint-Petersburg.

– This meeting did not give any results, because both Armenia and
Nagorno Karabakh are fully under Russia’s dictate.

I have once warned Russia that by rejecting to settle this conflict in
1994-1995, to withdraw Armenian armed forces from the occupied lands
and return Azerbaijani refugees to their homes, Russia made a great
mistake, as it will lose too much with Americans’ appearance.

/Day.Az/

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