The closer to Armenia, the further away from the truth
Having lost in Africa, France seeks the Caucasus

ANALYTICS  18 November 2022 - 13:06

For the third day now, Azerbaijani society has been discussing and condemning the biased anti-Azerbaijani resolution of the French Senate. This, in principle, the purely formal document recommends the French leadership and the European Union prohibit the import of Azerbaijani oil and gas, consider the creation of a "humanitarian office" in Karabakh, and show all possible ways to support Yerevan, discussing with it the possibility of strengthening its defence capabilities. Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry and Milli Mejlis have already reacted to this unfriendly step by the French side.

However, the hostile stance of Paris no longer surprises Baku. It is not the first time that the political elite of France adheres to a pro-Armenian policy, and after the clashes on the conditional Azerbaijani-Armenian border in September of this year, French politicians vehemently shifted to aggressive propaganda against Azerbaijan.

France, which has been co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group for nearly 30 years, has not considered it necessary to pay attention to the Khojaly genocide and has blatantly ignored the evident facts of crimes committed against the Azerbaijani people. France's "mediating" efforts within the OSCE Minsk Group, aimed mainly at maintaining the status quo in the Karabakh conflict, was one of the reasons why it remained unresolved until the autumn of 2020.

However, as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, France voted for four UNSC resolutions mandating the withdrawal of Armenian armed forces from sovereign Azerbaijani territory but did nothing to implement them, which was its duty as co-chair of the Minsk Group. But now, without lifting a finger to end the military conflict and return the occupied territories to Azerbaijan, Paris allows itself to demand Baku to withdraw troops from the Lachin corridor, i.e. from its internationally recognized land. These claims are the height of cynicism.

The reason for such duplicitous behavior of French senators when it comes to Azerbaijan and their immeasurable sympathy and support of everything concerning Armenia are the impressive capitals of the Armenian diaspora, money which seem to cover the eyes and ears of the majority of French parliamentarians and the political leadership so tightly that they ignore the destruction of cities, villages, mosques and even cemeteries by Armenian occupants on the lands of Azerbaijan to this day. It is as if they knew nothing about the night bombardment of Ganja civilians, they were not touched by the deaths of Azerbaijani children and the fate of over 4 thousand Azerbaijanis who went missing back in the 90s, during the First Karabakh war. All this was not a subject of discussion in the French Parliament. During and after the 44-day war, the French media vied with each other to reproduce all sorts of libelous accusations against Azerbaijan. Obviously, the French leadership is trying to gain a foothold in Armenia in order to use it for its geopolitical interests. That's why its political establishment openly and at the highest levels demonstrates its support for Armenia. It is practically obvious that Paris wants to turn Yerevan into its outpost in the Caucasus. Certainly, Armenia, the poorest country in the region, can benefit from such attention from France, as it gives hope for some economic prospects. But will Moscow, which has kept Yerevan on a tight leash for years, allow it?

Analyst of the Russian Institute of New Society Andrey Koryakovtsev in an interview with a correspondent of Caliber.Az also expressed the opinion that France wants to oust Russia from the South Caucasus.

"It is obvious that France is not interested in the well-being of Armenians, but has the desire to compensate somehow for its losses in Africa - in Mali, in Burkina Faso... The French government is aware that the anti-colonial movement in these countries is somehow supported by Russia, and therefore, it does not mind pushing it out of the negotiation process in the South Caucasus in retaliation. These are the real motives of France," Koryakovtsev believes.

However, the Russian expert believes that Paris is unlikely to succeed in this matter. First of all, because amid the independent positions of the other players, first of all, Türkiye and Azerbaijan, the success of the French initiatives is very problematic.

"Another thing is that Macron may have a different opinion on this matter," Koryakovtsev notes. - Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the Russian president, has already stated that 'no communication between Putin and Macron is planned for the time being'. Obviously, they have nothing to say to each other, and this is evidence that relations between them have worsened."

As for the Senate's anti-Azerbaijani decision, Koryakovtsev clearly concluded that "the French can pass any resolution, they can impose sanctions against Azerbaijan, they can do anything, but they will not succeed in defeating the will of the people for peace in the South Caucasus".

He is absolutely right. The adoption of this resolution will in no way change official Baku's intentions and will not be a method of influencing its policies. Today Azerbaijan is the political, economic, and military leader in the region. France's damaging, allegedly peacemaking stance, taken solely out of its own interests, will not add credibility to Macron and will not help the Armenian separatists, but it will certainly lose Baku's respect.

Caliber.Az