Do
you think Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Azerbaijan will mark the
beginning of Moscow’s new strategy regarding Azerbaijan and the region in
general? What are its key vectors? There is an opinion that the President of
Russia visited Baku on the threshold of the presidential election in Azerbaijan
to support another term of office of his Azeri counterpart. What can Baku offer
Moscow in exchange for that support?
There has been no reliable information about the
Kremlin’s new strategy regarding Azerbaijan yet. I think that Russian President
Vladimir Putin's visit to Azerbaijan, as well as the recent visits of the
leaders of the Turkic-speaking countries to Azerbaijan had a purpose to
demonstrate their support to the incumbent president and candidate for
president of Azerbaijan. Taking into consideration that the Russian President's
visit had a specific goal to support Aliyev on the threshold of the
presidential election in Azerbaijan, one should not wait for sharp changing of
the Russian policy after Putin's visit to Azerbaijan.
Baku believes that Russia has got enough
influence upon Armenia to persuade Yerevan to agree to the unilateral cession
of positions in the Karabakh peace process. Do you think it is possible after
achievement of new arrangements between Moscow and Baku?
Actually, the relations between Moscow and Yerevan
have different layers and are defined by many factors. These relations are many-sided and there is
no need to simplify them. They have been always thinking in Baku that "the
key to Karabakh" is in the hands of Moscow, but they are wrong. Such
understanding of the reality hinders Azerbaijani politicians to hold direct
negotiations with the NKR.
The
latest delivery of Russian military hardware worth 1 bln USD to Azerbaijan has
given another trump card to those who are against strengthening of Russia’s
influence in Armenia. What do you think Moscow was guided by when making this
decision that runs counter to the interests of Russia’s only strategic ally in
the Caucasus?
Russian functionaries and pro-Russian experts explain
this step of Russia by the business interests of Moscow. I think that all the
countries and force centers interested in peace in the South Caucasus region,
especially the international intermediaries in the Karabakh process, have to
refuse the steps which may break the created military balance, which the
fragile stability of the region is based on.
What
do you think the NKR Vice Premier Artur Aghabekyan’s Aug 14 partnership offer
to Azerbaijan means? Does it mean that Stepanakert has decided to be
independent in the foreign policy issues, first of all, in the Karabakh
conflict settlement that Yerevan officially deals with?
The idea of joint using of the hydro resources of the
river Terter is not a new one and was offered to Azerbaijan through
international intermediaries even by the former government of the Nagorno
Karabakh Republic. More than ten years ago, a border working meeting of hydro
engineers from the NKR and Azerbaijan took place through the intermediary of
Ambassador Kasprzyk. I think that by the statements about readiness to regional
cooperation the Karabakh authorities tried to show the world their constructive
intention against the background of the Azerbaijani position that is hardening
day by day.