Azerbaijan may be involved in NATO’s “rapid reaction operations” – minister
Zerkalo, Baku
6 Nov 04
Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Araz Azimov has said that the
country may take part in NATO operations as “new challenges require a
flexible and rapid reaction”. Speaking to journalists on the results
of NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer’s visit to Azerbaijan,
Azimov did not rule out that peacekeeping forces may be brought into
the region, if a settlement is found to the Karabakh issue. He also
rejected the OSCE mediators’ criticism of Azerbaijan’s decision to use
the UN General Assembly’s rostrum for discussing the situation in the
territories occupied by Armenia. The following is an excerpt from Rauf
Mirqadirov’s report in Azerbaijani newspaper Zerkalo on 6 November
headlined “USA’s mobile forces may appear in Azerbaijan” and subheaded
“This conclusion could at least be drawn from Deputy Foreign Minister
Araz Azimov’s words”; subheadings have been inserted editorially
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and NATO Secretary-General Jaap de
Hoop Scheffer discussed prospects for developing cooperation between
Azerbaijan and NATO at their meeting in Baku yesterday 5 November ,
Turan news agency reported.
Passage omitted: more about meeting; Scheffer’s news conference in
Baku
Commenting on the talks, Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Araz
Azimov has said that official Baku is ready to develop comprehensive
cooperation with NATO. This was confirmed at talks between Scheffer
and the Azerbaijani leadership today.
Azimov also said that Scheffer’s visit was brief, but very
fruitful. Mr Scheffer arrived in Baku from Yerevan as published,
actually from Tbilisi late on Thursday 4 November evening and left the
Azerbaijani capital on Friday afternoon. Azimov said that Scheffer’s
working day had started at 0800 0400 gmt yesterday. He managed to meet
the Azerbaijani president and the foreign minister and to attend a
sitting of the state commission on cooperation with NATO led by
Azerbaijani First Deputy Prime Minister Yaqub Eyyubov.
Passage omitted: details of talks
Plan for individual partnership with NATO to boost reforms in security
sector
The Individual Partnership Action Plan IPAP topped the agenda of the
talks. Azimov said that NATO was expected to endorse this document in
the near future. “This document was supposed to be endorsed by the
leadership of NATO before Scheffer’s visit to Baku. But some procedure
issues impeded this,” he added. The implementation of this plan will
start following its endorsement, Azimov said. The IPAP will aim at
bringing Azerbaijan’s security services into line with NATO standards.
At the same time, Azerbaijan has already carried out certain
activities to implement this plan. In particular, an interdepartmental
working group has been established to work out Azerbaijan’s foreign
policy and national security concepts as well as the country’s
military doctrine.
Azerbaijan may take part in NATO’s “rapid reaction operations”
Naturally, Azimov was asked about the possibility that foreign
military bases would be deployed in Azerbaijan which is banned by the
recently-adopted law on national security guarantees. At first, Azimov
unequivocally said that this was impossible. But reservations
immediately followed.
For example, peacekeeping forces may be deployed in the region if a
settlement is found to the Karabakh conflict. Azimov also said that in
this case one should not draw specific conclusions from his theoretic
assumptions. “I would like to say that talks on this issue are not
being held. But if need be, the peacekeeping forces can be basically
deployed in the conflict zone by a decision of an international
organization, of which Azerbaijan is a member. At the same time, them
will have a precisely-defined mandate and it would be impossible for
them to act outside this mandate,” Azimov said.
But this is not all. Azimov’s answer to the question about the
possibility that foreign military bases would be deployed in
Azerbaijan was more vague.
He said that Azerbaijan had already joined NATO’s programme concept on
the establishment and development of rapid reaction units. “It means
that Azerbaijan does not rule out the involvement in the alliance’s
rapid reaction operations in the future because new challenges require
a flexible and rapid reaction. In conditions of globalization, the
developments in any crisis require a rapid reaction, and Azerbaijan
may become an active participant in this process,” Azimov added. He
also said that the Azerbaijani armed forces could organize this kind
of units.
OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmen should not speak on behalf of all OSCE
countries
Replying to journalists’ question, Azimov also said that Baku had
rejected criticism by co-chairmen of the OSCE Minsk Group in
connection with future discussions of the situation in occupied
territories by the UN General Assembly.
He said that Azerbaijan had earlier informed the OSCE
chairman-in-office, the UN secretary-general and the co-chairmen of
the OSCE Minsk Group themselves of Armenia’s illegal activities in the
occupied territories of Azerbaijan.
“We demanded that political measures be taken to stop such
activities. But this was not done, and Azerbaijan succeeded in putting
this issue on the UN General Assembly’s agenda. Azerbaijan may propose
a draft resolution or take other measures. In addition, the
co-chairmen can express only their own position, they are not speaking
on behalf of the entire Minsk Group. Turkey, which is also a member of
the OSCE Minsk Group, fully supports Azerbaijan’s position. Despite
the EU countries’ certain position, Germany has abstained in the vote
on this issue. This fact says something as well,” Azimov added.
Azimov said that the co-chairmen were well briefed on the situation in
the occupied territories. This especially applies to Andrzej Kasprzyk,
personal representative of the OSCE chairman-in-office, Azimov
added. He called on the co-chairmen to step up their work and not to
speak on behalf of all the OSCE countries.
At the same time, Azimov expressed bewilderment at the position of
some neighbouring countries which had not supported Azerbaijan during
the discussions of this issue especially as Azerbaijan has constantly
been supporting the fair position of these countries in similar
situations. Although Azimov refused to name the country, but it was
clear that he was referring to Georgia.