Expert: European Union Conducts Pragmatic Policy towards Baku

Baku / 12.07.17 / Turan: The issue of human rights in the EU-Azerbaijan relations cannot be considered buried or pushed into the background. In the current situation, the European Union seeks to pursue a realistic policy. The political scientist Zardusht Alizadeh said this to Turan, commenting on yesterday's initialing of the document Priorities of Partnership between Azerbaijan and the EU in Brussels.

In this document, democracy and human rights were not included in 4 main priorities. However, in the official EU message, it was pointed out that these issues remain on the agenda of cooperation with Azerbaijan.

According to the expert, the attitude of the Azerbaijani government to human rights is well known in the EU. "Baku regards human rights as something alien, considering it a dangerous topic". The EU is building relations with Baku, understanding this, as long as there is no opportunity to build an alternative policy, Alizadeh believes.

At the same time, he believes the EU seeks to support the struggle for human rights in Azerbaijan, but one desire of the EU for this is not enough.

As for the reasons for the current situation in Azerbaijan, Alizade believes the opposition does not have sufficient strength, and the level of political culture needs to be increased. -06D--