Visit by EU foreign policy chief can ′revitalise′ relations with Azerbaijan

by Martin Banks

The visit will go ahead in late February or early March, the first by such a high ranking EU official since former Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso three years ago. It signals renewed efforts by both the EU and Azerbaijan to repair relations damaged after a European Parliament controversial resolution last September. It resulted in Azerbaijan suspending its participation in the Euronest parliamentary assembly.

Before Mogherini's visit, a delegation from the Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists (AECR), the Brussels-based pan-European group, and several senior MEPs will also arrive in the Caspian capital.

Baku is unhappy with "double standards" by the EU over the on-going Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which Azerbaijani officials assert is under Armenian occupation, contrasting this to its response to Russia's annexation of Crimea which resulted in sanctions against Moscow. Azerbaijan has also condemned "misreporting" of the country and coverage of events such as last year's successful European Games in Baku hosted which attracted over 6,000 athletes from all over the world.

Under Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev's rule, the country has increased its international profile, including the 2015 Eurovision song contest. In June it will host its first-ever F1 grand prix.

Hikmat Hajiyev, spokesman for Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry, says that Mogherini's visit is an opportunity to "usher in a new chapter" in its relations with the EU. But he points out that while the programme of the visit is still under discussion by the two parties, Azerbaijan has called for a "more individual" approach to the six countries in the Eastern Partnership (EaP), the EU initiative covering Azerbaijan, Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus, Georgia and Armenia. 

Speaking from Baku, the official said, "This is logical as they are at very different stages of development." He said Azerbaijan will also use the pending visit by Mogherini, the 28-nation bloc's top foreign diplomat, to call for EU to support Azerbaijan's right to sovereignty and "territorial integrity" over Nagorno-Karabakh. Baku wants a clause on this to be inserted in the draft Association Agreement with the EU.

Hajiyev said that oil-rich Azerbaijan, an important energy supplier for Europe, also hopes the negotiations with Mogherini will pave the way for a new agreement on strategic partnership, which will determine the format of the future cooperation with the EU. Nagorno-Karabakh he said, "We want the EU to play a more active role in military conflicts. The Commission has a clear position on other conflicts but not this. We're not asking for anything extraordinary, just an approach that reflects the principles of international law."

Turning to the non- binding resolution adopted by the European Parliament, he said this was an example of a "lop sided" stance often taken against Azerbaijan by the institution, adding, "Every country has its problems and issues and we are no different of course but you should remember ours is still a relatively young democracy and we have come a very long way in a short space of time since gaining our independence from the former Soviet Union." He recalls that 20 years ago, with nearly 50 per cent of the population in poverty, Azerbaijan was in danger of becoming "just another failed state."

His comments are partly echoed by Azay Guliyev, a senior Azerbaijani MP who chairs the Council of State Support to NGOs, an organisation that has given financial and other support to some 4,500 groups, including human rights organisations, over the past eight years. He agrees that Mogherini's visit can help improve relations, saying, "It is a very important visit because we have many questions of the EU which I hope she can clarify. I will be expecting some concrete results and it's a good time to re-establish the relationship with the EU. Azerbaijan stands ready to offer the hand of friendship."

Guliyev also highlighted the efforts being taken to promote racial harmony, an issue high on the agenda of European politicians in the wake of recent events. This includes successfully assimilating the estimated 1m refugees forced to flee their homes in Azerbaijan's disputed regions, including Nagorno-Karabakh. He pointed out that, despite Armenia's continued occupation, some 30,000 Armenians, many of them women who married Azerbaijani men, were living peacefully in Azerbaijan.

Further comment comes from MP Bahar Muradova, deputy speaker of the Azerbaijan Parliament and herself a refugee from Fuzuli district, one of the seven occupied territories of Azerbaijan surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh, who believes Europe has "lessons to learn" from Azerbaijan as it continues to struggle to cope with the migrant crisis. "I am very disappointed in how Europe has handled this crisis, in particular at how some EU members have sought to distinguish between Christian and Muslim refugees," she said. She also hopes Mogherini's visit will help repair relations with the European Parliament, saying, "They are certainly a lot cooler these days but I have big expectations of this visit and we attach a lot of importance to our relationship with the EU."

Azerbaijan has declared 2016 "Year of Multiculturalism" and Mubariz Gurbanli, who chairs the State Committee on Religious Associations, also believes Europe can learn from the way it has integrated people from "many different faiths" including Muslims, Christians and Jews. He said an atmosphere of tolerance prevails in Azerbaijan, recalling the Global Forum of the UN Alliance of Civilisations will be held in Baku this year.