Day.Az, Azerbaijan
October 24 2008

Russia is also ready to occupy Baku if political conditions permit worldwide

Prominent expert Vafa Quluzada made this statement in an interview
with Day.az when commenting on a thesis by Konstantin Zatulin, first
deputy chairman of the Russian State Duma committee for affairs of the
CIS [the Commonwealth of Independent States] and relations with
compatriots and the director of the institute for the CIS countries,
that a package on the Karabakh resolution, envisaging the recognition
of the "NKR" and the return of the seven districts, had drawn up long
ago.

"With his conclusion Konstantin Zatulin did not discover a new
America. A plan for the settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani
Nagornyy Karabakh conflict has existed for a long time, according to
which, Azerbaijan recognizes independence of the `NKR’ [the Nagornyy
Karabakh republic], ceding both Nagornyy Karabakh and Lacin to
Armenia, getting in exchange seven occupied districts of our country.

"The fact that Russia is actively imposing this plan on the sides to
the conflict shows that the Kremlin is trying to add to this plan
points on the need for demilitarization of the seven occupied
Azerbaijani districts and stationing of the Russian troops there under
guise of peacekeepers.

"In other words, Russia is trying to replace unofficial occupation of
part of Azerbaijani territories under cover of Armenia to the official
occupation of the Azerbaijani territories and for this reason it is
trying to pull in the Russian troops. With military bases in South
Ossetia and Abkhazia, Russia is now trying to station its military
bases in Nagornyy Karabakh and in other occupied territories of
Azerbaijan. I think Azerbaijan will never let the events to develop in
such a manner," V. Quluzada said.

He believes that official Baku should continue pursuing own foreign
policy course, insisting on adherence to the principle of territorial
integrity of the states as a fundamental principle of the
international law.

"Azerbaijan should understand perfectly well that if the political
conditions permit worldwide, then Russia is ready to occupy
Baku. Therefore, our country needs to enlist firm support of the USA
and the leading European countries," V. Quluzada summed up.

[translated]