"The tension is not just with France"

The French Senate adopted a resolution demanding the imposition of sanctions against Azerbaijan.

The resolution also expresses support for Armenia's territorial integrity and condemns Azerbaijan's operations in Karabakh on September 19-20, 2023. The document also demands the return of Armenians to Karabakh and a guarantee for their safety.

Furthermore, the resolution demands "the immediate withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from the sovereign territory of Armenia", condemns the arrests of the political leaders of the so-called regime in Karabakh, and requests that the UNESCO mission be sent to Nagorno-Karabakh to prepare a report "on the state of cultural and religious heritage".

The resolution also calls for the strictest measures, including the confiscation of assets of Azerbaijani leaders and an embargo on gas and oil imports from Azerbaijan, as sanctions for Azerbaijan's "military aggression."

It should be noted that this is not the first such resolution of the French Senate. A similar resolution was adopted after Azerbaijan's victory in the Second Karabakh War in 2020.

In response to this, the Committee on International Relations and Interparliamentary Relations of the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan called on the government to take measures. The calls include the imposition of sanctions against France, the freezing of any assets of French officials in Azerbaijan if discovered, the suspension of all economic relations with France, the removal of all French companies, including Total, from Azerbaijan, the prohibition of the participation of French companies in any project commissioned by the state of Azerbaijan, It is requested to instruct the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to take steps towards the recognition of the independence of Kanaky, Maohi Nui and Corsica.

Former diplomat Emin Shaig Ibrahimov spoke to ASTNA about what happened.

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Question: Emin Bey, you must have read the resolution of the French Senate demanding the imposition of sanctions against Azerbaijan. How fair is this resolution of the French Senate?

Answer: I have seen the resolution adopted by the French Senate. The spirit of the document is not new. Both houses of the French Parliament, the National Assembly and the Senate, have passed resolutions in the past. In general, France's prejudice against Azerbaijan in the context of the conflict with Armenia is not a secret to anyone. Therefore, this type of one-sided position of the French parliament, which has not seen the occupation of Azerbaijani lands by Armenia for 30 years, definitely attracts attention. All these points are clear. However, the deterioration of relations with France, one of the leading countries of Europe and the European Union, does not serve our interests. The foreign policy strategy should take a comprehensive approach to the issues facing the country and avoid the line that generally strains relations with the West and increases dependence on Russia.

Question: Why does France generally take such steps? Why is Armenia interested in spoiling relations with Azerbaijan?

Answer: We must see that the tension is not only with France. In general, there is a growing tension between the Azerbaijani authorities and the collective West. Because the Azerbaijani government is on the side of Russia in the geopolitical competition between the West and Russia in the region. The West-Russia conflict also corresponds to the antagonism between democracy and authoritarianism in the region. From this point of view, it is understandable that the authorities of two authoritarian regimes - Azerbaijan and Russia - act together. Naturally, none of them want the West and democracy to strengthen in the region. Although there are many manipulations that blur the situation, it is becoming more and more obvious that Aliyev is acting together with Putin at the strategic level. Almost everyone knows that Armenia is on the Western side in this conflict. At such a moment, the West perceives Azerbaijan's pressure on Armenia together with Russia as a pressure on itself. That is, it is not an issue of Armenia in itself.

Question: You probably know about the spy scandal. How believable is France's deployment of spies in Azerbaijan and what could be the purpose here?

Answer: One of the main tasks of diplomats is to collect information about the country where they work, to establish contacts with various circles. At what point these activities and relationships cross the line of espionage is largely a subjective assessment. Without knowing the details of the matter, it is impossible to say something specific about the essence. But I am sure that all such activities have happened in the past too. Now the raising of these issues is parallel to the deteriorating relations. All these are also topics that feed the anti-Western propaganda of the authorities. This government's fear of democracy forces it to constantly have topics for anti-Western propaganda. The Azerbaijani authorities usually try to conduct anti-Western propaganda through France. The traditional pro-Armenian position of France in the Azerbaijani society is also useful in this regard. When the topic is France and Karabakh, it becomes easier for society to unite around the government.

All this, of course, does not mean that France is as pure as the driven snow. Or it cannot justify France's unfair position towards us. But our goal should not be to spoil all relations with the West, to make ourselves completely dependent on Russia, to block the path to democracy and progress. If you want to strain the relationship, you can always find "legitimate reasons" for it. The authoritarian nature of the government constantly pushes it to the wrong side in the Russia-West conflict in the region.

Question: The Committee on International Relations and Interparliamentary Relations of the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan called on the government to take measures. The main point of attention here is the suspension of all economic relations with France, the removal of all French companies, including Total, from Azerbaijan, and the prohibition of the participation of French companies in any project commissioned by the state of Azerbaijan. Especially the issue of Total. If Total and other French companies are removed from Azerbaijan, who will suffer more from this issue?

Answer: Such reciprocal steps that increase tension do not serve our interests. The goal should not be to find an excuse for this line of tension and escalate the tension. It is necessary to try to get out of this situation. However, I do not believe that this will happen during the term of this government. Specifically, as for Total and other French companies, of course, their exit from Azerbaijan cannot be considered a good development for us. It's not about measuring with a ruler who gets more damage. Continuing this line of tension is against our national interests. At this point, we can say that the national interests and the interests of the authoritarian regime are in conflict with each other.

Question: Why does all this happen in general?

Answer: In response to this question, I want to emphasize once again that the fundamental reason for all this is the geopolitical conflict in the region and, accordingly, the conflict between democracy and authoritarianism. Processes show that geopolitical competition will continue the trend of tension. As this competition intensifies, the Aliyev regime will inevitably be forced to seek refuge in Russia, the most reliable patron of authoritarianism in the region. This, in itself, will be accompanied by the strengthening of authoritarianism in the country. The recent increase in repression in the country is not accidental. It all happens in the context I mentioned. I think the trend of internal political deterioration will continue.

Question: What steps should both parties and third parties take to improve relations between France and Azerbaijan?

Answer: First, we need to look at what it means to have good bilateral relations. Traditionally, the Azerbaijani authorities have avoided institutional relations with the West, and have mainly been satisfied with business relations with the mercantile circles of the West. Although the Western countries also criticized the issues of human rights and democracy, relations were mainly in this format. But this model of good relations is not in our national interest. That is, when we say good relations with the West, we cannot ignore institutional relations and democratization. Otherwise, all cooperation serves only the interests of a handful of people. Let's not forget that France is also a politically leading member of the European Union. Without good relations with France, the development of this direction is also impossible. Therefore, in order to establish positive relations between Azerbaijan and the West in accordance with our interests, a sincere democratization process must take place in the country.

However, it seems that in the near future, relations will continue to worsen. As relations with the West worsen, it is highly likely that relations with France will show a particularly deteriorating dynamic. We also see that Georgia and Armenia have made some progress in the direction of relations with the West and democracy in the region. That's why the government needs topics that will camouflage the fact that it stands by Russia. From this point of view, the best and tried and tested topic is enmity with Armenia. In turn, as the enmity with Armenia continues, the West will inevitably come upon us, the pro-Armenian bias of the West becomes more pronounced, and the authorities use all this to discredit the line of rapprochement with the West. In fact, our goal should not be to prove that the West is against us and that it takes an unfair position towards us. This can be a topic for someone's propaganda. But it will not help to solve the deep systemic problems that the country is facing. On the contrary, this strategic line creates much deeper problems for us and blocks the horizons for the country's progress. For the authoritarian government, these are not problems. The main priority for them is to remove the threat of democracy from themselves as much as possible.