Media Review for February 12

The conditions for opening the borders of Turkey and Azerbaijan with Armenia, the likelihood of an aggravation of the situation in Karabakh, how "smart villages" and "smart cities" will be managed, and the impact on Azerbaijan's tourism after the abolition of visas with Turkey are topics of today's media.

The website Müsavat.com discusses the topic of opening the borders of Turkey and Azerbaijan with Armenia. Both countries will open their borders at the same time and under common conditions.

Armenia must complete the demarcation of borders with Azerbaijan, sign an agreement on the recognition of territorial integrity, recognize the borders of Turkey, and renounce claims to territory and the so-called "Armenian genocide".

It is now important for Armenia to get out of the geopolitical and geo-economic blockade, as it is rapidly approaching default. The opening of the border with Armenia does not promise Turkey financial and economic benefits, therefore it does not arouse much interest in Turkey. That is why it makes no sense to impose “border conditions” on Turkey on the Armenian Foreign Minister. Moreover, the opening of borders is more important for Armenia than for Turkey.

The website Redaktor.az discusses the situation in Karabakh with the political scientist Gabil Huseynli against the background of the visit to Karabakh by the Prosecutor General of Armenia and the meetings held there. Huseynli considers it absolutely illegal. In his opinion, illegal visits and unauthorized actions of peacekeepers can aggravate the situation.

After the start of the joint activity of the Turkish-Russian Joint Monitoring Center, a certain discipline reigned at the Lachin checkpoint. As for the Russians, they either recognize the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, then they commit actions that violate it. The political scientist believes that the Azerbaijani side should talk about the illegal actions of the peacekeepers, as well as the early return of Azerbaijanis to Khankendi.

The website Mətbuat.az discusses with experts the creation of “smart city” and “smart village” in the liberated territories. What do these smart village and smart city projects mean and how will they be managed and what do they promise?

Experts believe that the interested parties should also attract foreign experts and use the successful experience in this area. Smart urban and rural infrastructure should be an integral part of the long-term concept of “Digital Azerbaijan” and certain structures should first develop this concept.

The website Bizimyol.info.az is discussing with the Chairman of the State Agency for Tourism Fuad Nagiyev the abolition of visas with Turkey. He believes that this fact will contribute to an increase in the number of tourists from this country. So, in 2019, 1 million Azerbaijanis visited Turkey, and 200 thousand Turkish citizens visited Azerbaijan. To attract more tourists from Turkey, it is necessary to promote Azerbaijani tourism in this country.