EU’S EXTERNAL RELATIONS COMMISSIONER CALLS FOR DECREASING DEFENSE EXPENDITURE IN AZERBAIJAN
Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
Aug. 30, 2006
In an unusually strongly worded speech, delivered at a conference
in Slovenia on August 28, the EU’s external relations commissioner,
Benita Ferrero-Waldner, observed that "defense expenditure in Georgia
and Azerbaijan is going through the roof." APA reports quoting
RFE/Radio Liberty.
Ferrero-Waldner noted in her speech that increases in defense
expenditure send a negative message in terms of resolving the region’s
conflicts. The commissioner also says such increases are unjustifiable
in countries that are "in desperate need of investment in education,
health, and small businesses."
The commissioner also criticized leaders in the region for their
"inflammatory rhetoric." She also noted there has been "little or no
progress" toward settling the conflicts in the region, including the
Nagorno-Garabagh conflict.
Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry told the APA it is not informed about
Ferrero-Waldner’s statement. The Ministry official said such statement
might be regarded as interference with the interior affairs of an
independent state.