Azerbaijan France's ally in keeping peace in South Caucasus, says French senator

/By AzerNews/

By Amina Nazarli

Azerbaijan is an ally of France in keeping the peace in the South Caucasus, said French Senator Nathalie Goulet in an interview to the opinion-internationale.com website.

Goulet said some critics claim that “the democratic values are not recognized in Azerbaijan.”

She added that Azerbaijan is a young country, which once again gained the independence 24 years ago.

“Nothing can be built in one day,” she said. “The election process has improved [in Azerbaijan]. Of course, there are still problems. However, the anti-Azerbaijan campaign is already irritating, and it is not constructive.”

Azerbaijan is working with the Council of Europe on the issue of improving the democratic values, she stressed.

The senator also spoke about the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, as a result of which people are still being killed.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijani territory, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region, and seven surrounding districts.

Touching upon the 1st European Games currently underway in Baku, the senator recalled that the Armenian athletes are also taking part in the European Games.

“All the European countries and Israel are taking part in the first-ever European Games in a country, which is a member of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation,” Goulet underscored.

The European Games, which kicked off in Baku on June 12, will last until June 28. Baku was awarded the Games by the European Olympic Committees (EOC) in December 2012.

The senator stressed that Azerbaijan is a geo-strategic ally of Europe.

“Azerbaijan is the only country in the South Caucasus, which keeps the real sovereignty,” said Goulet. “This country is also an important trading partner of France and cooperates with it in the oil, gas and agricultural sectors.”

The French senator went on to say that Azerbaijan is developing rapidly, adding that women in Azerbaijan were granted the right to vote in 1921, for the first time in the Islamic world.

She also stressed that Azerbaijan is a secular country, which has a vibrant Jewish community, and the Christian church.

“Despite Azerbaijan being a Muslim country, it has established close diplomatic contacts with Israel. There has never been anti-Semitism. Azerbaijan is fighting against radical religious movements,” Goulet added.