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The Blogs: Azerbaijan-Israel strategic partnership proves its worth

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Michael_Novakhov
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Court of Appeal rejects complaints of those arrested in 'Toplum TV' case

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The Baku Court of Appeal on Thursday rejected the appeal against the extension of the detention of journalist Mushfig Jabbar, who was arrested in the 'Toplum TV' case.

As his lawyer Nazim Musayev told Turan, there are no material or procedural grounds for Jabbar's detention. Jabbar has nothing to do with the charges of "foreign currency smuggling" brought against him, because the journalist had not left the country for 7 years before his arrest.

The lawyer said that no primary evidence of Jabbar's guilt has been presented, and each time the investigation motivates the extension of the arrest by conducting an "expert examination" that is not be carried out.

Today, the Court of Appeal also rejected a complaint against the extension of the arrest of another person involved in the case, Ramin Babayev, an employee of the Institute of Democratic Initiatives. A day earlier, the complaints of Akif Gurbanov, speaker of the 'Platform III of the Republic', and Ilkin Amrakhov, an employee of the Institute of Democratic Initiatives, were not satisfied either.

The complaint of the founder of 'Toplum TV', Alesker Mammadli, was also not satisfied, despite serious health problems.

In the coming days, the appeals of two more defendants in this case will be considered - Ruslan Izzatli, a member of the 'Platform III of the Republic', and Ali Zeynalov, a 'Toplum TV' journalist.

*On March 6-8, 9 journalists and activists of 'Toplum TV' and its partner organization, the Institute for Democratic Initiatives, were detained. They were accused of smuggling foreign currency. Seven people were arrested, and two were placed under police supervision. The defendants in the case deny the charges. Human rights activists recognized those arrested as political prisoners. On December 27, the court extended their arrest until April 6.

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Michael_Novakhov
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Court sentences activist Rail Abbasov to 6.5 years of imprisonment.

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On January 9, the Baku Court of Serious Crimes completed the trial of activist Rail Abbasov, accused of fraud.

In his last statement, Abbasov said that he was arrested on far-fetched and trumped-up charges for defending his friend, human rights defender Bakhtiyar Hajiyev, who was also unreasonably arrested. Abbasov cited numerous inconsistencies in his case as evidence of falsification of his case and asked the court to make a fair decision.

However, the court sentenced Abbasov to 6.5 years of imprisonment.

Earlier, the prosecutor requested that Abbasov be sentenced to 8 years of imprisonment.

*On September 20, 2023, the Nasimi Court of Baku arrested Abbasov for 4 months on charges under Article 178.3.2 (large-scale fraud) of the Criminal Code. Abbasov denies the accusation, considering his active participation in protecting the rights of activist Bakhtiyar Hajiyev, who was arrested back in December 2022, to be the true reason. Human rights activists recognized both as political prisoners.

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Michael_Novakhov
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Armenia's government backs bill on launching EU accession process

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The Armenian government on Jan. 9 supported a draft law on initiating the country's accession process with the European Union, Armenia News reported.

The government "expressed a positive stance" on the bill, which was submitted as a citizens' initiative. It has been submitted to Armenia's parliament for consideration, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan said.

Yerevan has made an effort to build a closer relationship with the EU amid deteriorating ties with Russia, though the South Caucasus country is yet to submit a membership application.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stressed that even if the bill is passed, the accession process can start only if the Armenian people support it in a referendum.

"But if the law is adopted, we must have some idea about our next steps" and "discuss with the EU the road map that they imagine and that we imagine," Pashinyan said at a government meeting.

The prime minister noted that the bill should be approached without "undue enthusiasm" and that the country should currently focus on developing more practical steps, such as visa liberalization.

Speaking in the European Parliament in October 2023, Pashinyan said that his country is ready to align more closely with the bloc, though he later expressed doubts about whether Armenia is ready for full membership.

Pashinyan spoke in the EU's legislature shortly after Russia, Armenia's traditional ally, failed to prevent an Azerbaijani lighting offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh, leading to a rapid deterioration of ties between Yerevan and Moscow.

Last March, the European Parliament adopted a resolution urging the EU's executive bodies to strengthen relations with Armenia. The parliament also said Armenia meets the Maastricht Treaty requirements to apply for membership.

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Michael_Novakhov
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Why does Aliyev bring up unimportant issues against Iran?

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In a lengthy interview with Azeri local media on Tuesday, President Aliyev reviewed the political and economic situation of his country and the developments in the region in 2024. In part of interview about the future of relations between Tehran and Baku, he brought up unimportant issues and stated that "relations between Iran and the Republic of Azerbaijan were deteriorated under the previous Iranian government, and we still do not have very serious relations under the new government; there have been contacts between the two countries, but they were mostly related to economic and transportation issues."

"The deterioration of ties were not our fault," the Azeri president later said, blaming the previous Iranian government for the the current state of relations. Aliyev claimed that the reason for the deteriorated relations between the two countries is Tehran, but even in an official interview yesterday, he once again, without providing any reason, highlighted the incident of the attack on the country's embassy in Tehran two years ago and the recent marginal issues in Ardabil, saying that he and the Turkish president were insulted and that "the Iranian Foreign Ministry's expression of regret was not enough and Tehran must officially apologize."

On  December 29, 2023, during the recent ceremony commemorating the "martyrs of the Chaldaran War and the martyrs of the Resistance Front" in Ardabil, one of the participants of the ceremony, who was not holding any official position, made statements against the leaders of the Republic of Azerbaijan and Turkey, which soon forced Ayatollah Seyyed Hassan Ameli, Friday prayer imam and representative of the Leader of the Islamic Republic in Ardabil province, to announce that "The inappropriate language that was used in one of the gatherings this week by an ordinary and unofficial person cannot be considered our official, religious, and belief language and the official position of the Islamic Republic, and such a relationship in the world of diplomacy is completely unconventional and controversial."

Recalling that "the enemies of the Iranian nation are seeking to destroy and undermine Iran's relations with its neighbors," he emphasized, "Everyone knows that the personal statements of individuals are by no means the official stance of any government in the world."

Furthermore, as Aliyev himself said, the Iranian Foreign Ministry has also officially expressed regret over the incident; however, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry summoned the Iranian chargé d'affaires in Baku on January 1 and announced its protest. 

Azerbaijan was expected not to allow such remarks from an irresponsible and ordinary person, who is a completely unimportant issue to be brought up to an official level. However, surprisingly, in his official interview yesterday as the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev enhanced this marginal issue to the highest official levels and claimed that Iran should officially "apologize" for the statements of an ordinary person.

To make this false statement believable, Aliyev placed this unimportant issue alongside the attack on the Iranian embassy in Tehran two years ago, in order to kind of prove, that Baku is completely "innocent" in creating the current situation.

In February 2022, following an armed attack on the Azerbaijani embassy, ​​the Iranian Foreign Ministry strongly condemned the act and emphasized that an armed individual's attack on the embassy was carried out of personal motives, announcing that Tehran would seriously follow up on the matter and prosecute the perpetrator of the incident; however, Aliyev, recalling this event once again, describes the attack on the Baku embassy as "terrorist" in order to create tensions between the two countries for unknown and suspicious reasons; This is while, according to international norms, such issues can be resolved at lower levels and do not need to be enhanced to an official and high level.

Aliyev blamed Tehran for the current state of the bilateral relations as if these marginal issues were a bolt from the blue. He brings up unimportant issues as if Republic of Azerbaijan, as a Muslim country and neighbor, has observed good neighborliness, and it is Iran that is seeking to worsen relations between the two countries by touching on those issues.

Since in order to understand any phenomenon, one must also consider its previous record and take into account the processes that led to the occurrence of an incident or event. The current state of relations between Tehran and Baku is no exception. It is necessary to ask what other factors are involved in the current situation that Ilham Aliyev deliberately ignores and points the blame at Tehran.

Everybody knows that one of the main bases of the Zionist regime around Iran is the territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan, and Iranian officials have repeatedly stated that many anti-Iranian mischiefs and sabotage attacks can be traced back to the Zionist bases and its headquarters in the Republic of Azerbaijan. However, the Baku officials not only have not taken any action in this regard, but also boast about their relationship with Tel Aviv.

Furthermore, over the past years, the media and television networks of the Republic of Azerbaijan have repeatedly acted against the territorial integrity of Iran and aired special programs for the Azeri-speaking target audience in Iran with their malicious goals. However, Iran has never brought up such meddling activities at an official level and has always emphasized good neighborliness and good relations with neighbors, calling for the peaceful resolution of those problems. It has also advised the Republic of Azerbaijan that the Zionist regime is seeking to disrupt the good relations between Iran and the Republic of Azerbaijan; an issue that the Baku authorities always ignore.  It is an irony, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan thinks that he is in a position to blame Iran for the current situation!

MNA/6341418

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Michael_Novakhov
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Azerbaijan's President Aliyev calls Armenia 'fascist state, threat to region'

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Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on Jan. 7 called Armenia effectively a "fascist state," claiming that Baku might have no other choice but to "destroy" its neighbor's so-called "fascist ideology."

Azerbaijan and Armenia are bitter rivals, having clashed in multiple territorial and ethnic conflicts since they gained independence three decades ago.

Speaking in an interview with local television channels, Aliyev accused Armenian authorities of being bearers of a "fascist ideology" for 30 years, shaping the country in their image. He also called Armenia a "threat to the region."

The Azerbaijani strongman issued thinly veiled threats against Armenia, saying that "fascism must be destroyed. It will be destroyed either by the Armenian leadership or by us. We have no other choice."

In September 2023, Baku's forces captured the Nagorno-Karabakh region, de jure Azerbaijani territory that, at the time, was de facto ruled by ethnic Armenian authorities and had been a key point of contest between the two countries.

Almost the entire 100,000-strong Armenian population fled the region following Azerbaijan's lightning offensive.

As Yerevan and Baku lead bilateral talks on normalizing relations and settling outstanding border disputes, Armenian authorities have accused Azerbaijan, currently the stronger player in the region, of planning further hostilities.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said last December that the Azerbaijani side received proposals on two unresolved issues in the negotiations but has yet to respond.

"If Azerbaijan also doesn’t have intentions to attack Armenia, then the likelihood of escalation in the region is zero," Pashinyan said in an interview last month.

Aliyev also called on France and other countries to stop providing arms to Armenia and take back the weapons already provided. Yerevan has deepened security cooperation with the West after its traditional ally, Russia, did not step in to prevent Azerbaijan's attack in 2023 despite having peacekeepers deployed in Nagorno-Karabakh.

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Michael_Novakhov
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