Isa Gambar: There is not any "fifth column"

Baku/16.02.22/Turan: For several days, the pro-government media have been publishing articles about the creation of a "fifth column" by the West in Azerbaijan and the preparation of a revolutionary scenario. These articles mention a number of foreign NGOs and state that they have allocated significant funds for this purpose.

Articles of this kind were published even before the authorities attacked civil society in 2014-2015. After these articles, a number of NGO chairmen and journalists were arrested, and civil society was paralyzed. But what is the purpose of these articles today?

On the one hand, the resignation of Ramiz Mehdiyev was characterized by many pro-government media as "the liquidation of the fifth column" of Russia. On the other hand, some media outlets, considered the mouthpiece of the government, publish threatening articles. What does all this mean?

Isa Gambar, head of the National Center for Strategic Thought, commented on these and other issues in the "Difficult Question" program.

According to him, the phrase "fifth column" (the name of General Franco's agents operating in the Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War of 1936-1939 - Ed.) in political phraseology and journalism is used in relation to various types of internal enemy.

“But, in Azerbaijan, this phrase is usually used in relation to the pro-Russian forces. However, sometimes the Azerbaijani authorities and pro-government forces use the expression "fifth column" in relation to the West. Although there is no attack on Azerbaijan from the West, so that it has a “fifth”, “fourth” or some other column, some forces in the country,” Gambar said, adding that the use of this expression by the authorities is completely meaningless.

“There is no “fifth column”. It's just that the West propagates its values ​​and approaches all over the world, including in countries with authoritarian regimes, such as Azerbaijan. And in order to propagate its values, the West cooperates with local forces, and these usually turn out to be opposition forces,” he stressed.

According to the politician, if you figure out who the West cooperates with most in Azerbaijan, it will turn out that the authorities will come first.

Isa Gambar does not deny that some opposition parties in Azerbaijan have certain connections with Western organizations. But these are legal connections.

“For example, the Musavat party is a member of the Liberal Democratic Union of Europe and through this organization, it cooperates with the liberal democratic parties of many countries. Musavat also cooperates with other democratic organizations of the West, but all this is on a legal basis,” Gambar said.

As for the attitude towards revolutions, according to Gambar, the Azerbaijani opposition, and in particular the Musavat party, are supporters of evolutionary development, and not fans of revolutions.

“However, the problem is that as the situation worsens, the possibilities for the evolutionary development of the country are reduced, and the chances of revolutionary upheavals are growing,” he stressed.—0—