ANTI-AMERICAN CAMPAIGN STEMS FROM ANXIETY

Azadliq
March 19 2010
Azerbaijan

It was a grave mistake for the Azerbaijani government to act as an
independent subject in the energy sector

[translated from Azeri]

Zafar Quliyev: The authorities understand that gradually mounting US
pressure is not by chance

Anti-American campaign in the country is on the rise as time goes on.

After the sharp criticism of America by Parliament Speaker Oqtay
Asadov and MP Ali Huseynov [of the ruling New Azerbaijan Party and
chairman of the parliamentary standing committee on legal issues and
state building], official media has also brought this topic under
the spotlight.

Referring to the speaker’s speech at the latest session of the
Milli Maclis, who branded The Washington Post report as "a word of a
groveller", official newspapers have slammed America for what happened
in Guantanamo.

Political expert Zafar Quliyev believes that as a rule, the Azerbaijani
authorities’ reaction to the pressure from the West is similar, adding
that this behaviour of the authorities is connected with the recent
mounting US pressure. Zafar Quliyev believes that both the article
by The Washington Post and the annual report of the US Department
of State [2009 Human Rights Report: Azerbaijan], where Azerbaijan is
harshly criticized, are behind this [criticism].

"The government is trying to prove that the US criticism of it is
groundless. However, it should also be stressed that there are a lot
of conflicting moments in relations between the Azerbaijani government
and the West. There were frequent brief anti-western campaigns in
autumn last year. A similar campaign was also launched against Turkey.

They all show that the authorities are in general anxious about
processes taking place around. They understand that the gradually
mounting pressure from the USA is not accidental. All of a sudden,
the Department of State releases a very tough report about Azerbaijan
and The Washington Post publishes such an article."

The authorities understand well that their policies are causing
serious reactions from the West, Zafar Quliyev said, adding that the
criticism of the authorities is not only related to human rights and
democracy issues. The political expert believes it was wrong for the
Azerbaijani government to act as an independent subject in the energy
sector. He believes that although the government’s energy policy does
not provoke immediate reaction, anyway, similar statements and the
display of positions are manifestation of negative attitudes by the
West and the USA in particular.

"It is also possible that the Azerbaijani authorities’ position on
the Karabakh issue adds up to the anxiety. Moreover, [Azerbaijan’s]
sharp interference in the Turkish-Armenian dialogue, its failure to
clearly state its position on Iran has an impact on the Azerbaijani-US
relations irrespective of our wishes. If corruption-related accusations
are also added up to them, the whole complexity of the situation
will surface."