Grigory Karasin, Russia's Federation Council Committee on International Affairs Chairman responded to the harsh statements of the MP of the Milli Mejlis of Azerbaijan, Gudrat Hasanguliyev, in his telegram channel.
"I cannot help but react to the unfriendly statements of Gudrat Hasanguliyev, a deputy of the Milli Mejlis of Azerbaijan. In response to the statement of the Russian Foreign Ministry on July 15 of this year, he claims that "Russia does not want peace in the South Caucasus and is interested in continuing the bloody conflict between the Azerbaijani and Armenian peoples." The parliamentarian even allowed himself to call our country "untrustworthy and bloodthirsty" and demand the withdrawal of the Russian peacekeeping troops.
The senator expressed hope that such anti-Russian attacks do not reflect the official position of Baku. According to him, it is important that they be evaluated in the Parliament of Azerbaijan.
"I would like to remind the deputy that at all stages of the Nagorno-Karabakh problem, mainly thanks to Russia's efforts, it was possible to stop the military operations, bring the parties to the negotiating table and reach compromises.
In the fall of 2020, President Putin stopped the bloodshed in the region. With the participation of Moscow, trilateral agreements were developed at the highest level, which are the basis for the regulation of Armenian-Azerbaijani relations.
Russian peacekeepers deployed by the decision of the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia have established peace in Karabakh, helping to solve priority humanitarian and socio-economic problems. Just one fact: since November 2020, the military group has demined more than 2.5 thousand hectares of land, including almost 700 km of roads. Our peacekeepers gave the Karabakh Armenians and Azerbaijanis the opportunity to discuss the peace agenda. We consider the demands for the withdrawal of the Russian troop absolutely irresponsible," wrote Karasin.
According to him, Hasanguliyev's statement completely contradicts the spirit and content of the February 22, 2022 declaration on alliance cooperation between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Azerbaijan and does not correspond to high-level relations between Baku and Moscow, including in the parliamentary direction.
"We in the Federal Council are ready to continue the constructive dialogue with our Azerbaijani partners, who, as we know, are the absolute majority," concluded Grigory Karasin, former deputy foreign minister of the Russian Federation, chairman of the International Affairs Committee of the Russian Federal Council.
To remind, the Azerbaijani MP announced the day before.
"It is necessary to call the Russian ambassador to the Foreign Ministry and provide him with comprehensive information about the steps that Azerbaijan will take. It is also necessary to demand from Moscow to refrain from provocative behavior, which turns the documents signed between our countries into useless papers and presents Russia as an unreliable and bloodthirsty country in the eyes of partners and neighbors.
"We must officially announce that there is no question of extending the mandate of Russian peacekeepers to stay in Azerbaijan. The year 2025, when the mandate of the Russian peacekeepers expires, is also the deadline for peace negotiations. If we do not clearly state that position, the negotiations will continue forever," Hasanguliyev said.
