Interview with Azerbaijani Deputy Asim Mollazade, chairman of the Party of Democratic Reforms.
Q: What is your view of the French Senate's rejection of a bill, envisaging criminal responsibility for anyone who doubts the mythical "Armenian genocide", allegedly committed by the Ottoman Empire?
A: The French Senate has taken the right decision, since the events of 1915 in the Ottoman Empire should be assessed not by politicians but by professional historians. Moreover, the bill itself, which envisages criminal responsibility for anyone who rejects the mythical "Armenian genocide" by the Ottoman Empire, would strike a big blow to freedom of thought and expression. Had it been passed, it would have affected democratic values and pluralism of views. And its rejection in the French Senate is beneficial for France in terms of securing its image as a democratic state.
Q: Do you think that the "Armenian genocide" issue has become irrelevant this year not only in France, but in the United States too?
A: While making the decision to reject the bill, the French Senate showed a very serious approach to France's national interests, ensuring that they were not made dependent on any one community within the state. Therefore, the growing irrelevance of the so-called Armenian issue is not surprising. As for the United States, I have always been confident that Barack Obama would never fulfill the whims of the Armenian diaspora who are seeking recognition of their invented "Armenian genocide". This is not in the national interests of the United States and threatens to trigger serious complications in relations with Turkey and Azerbaijan. In other words, I think the triumph of the national interests of these states over the interests of the Armenian diaspora is what has really made the mythical "Armenian genocide" irrelevant. It is especially important that the United States and France are the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairing states. And we are expecting Russia, also a co-chair of the Minsk Group, to conduct a policy, based on the national interests of the country rather than the interests of the Armenian diaspora.
Q: Will the triumph of national interests in the leading states force Armenians worldwide to change their policy?
A: I doubt that the Armenian diaspora in the developed countries of the world will give up their struggle, but their efforts are doomed to fail as they run counter to the national interests of France, the USA, Russia and all other countries. Therefore, the growing irrelevance of the so-called Armenian issue should not be surprising. The Virtual Armenia they have set up does not make the interests of real Armenian citizens a corner-stone, causing serious political and economic depression in Armenia which deepens as the Armenian diaspora continues its fight in different countries. We saw the forms it has eventually taken, when more than a hundred members of a criminal Armenian gang with the defiant name “Armenian Power” were arrested and when another gang, Pzo, was exposed in the United States.
Q: What do you think of the future of real, rather than virtual, Armenia and the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh?
A: Azerbaijan is a steadily developing country. We are ready for mutually profitable cooperation with all countries. We are ready to cooperate with Armenia but to this end this country must give up its aggressive policy and territorial claims on Azerbaijan, stop being a hostage to its diaspora or other forces that pursue interests that they put above the interests of Armenia. Only in this situation will it be possible to settle the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, drag Armenia out of deep political and economic depression and secure stability in our region.
Akper Hasanov
News.Az
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
