Is Paris's biased attitude towards Baku French racism or a form of assistance to Russia?

POLITICS  25 November 2022 - 13:29

Russian and French flags have the same colors but in a different order, and it seems that someone in Paris missed the difference. The developments in recent weeks make us suspect that the Kremlin is dictating a new foreign policy for France.

"Just a few days ago, a group of 17 MEPs asked European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell to review the EU Association Agreement with Algeria. Parliamentarians from various factions, from the Socialists to the far-right, are deeply concerned about the North African country's strategic ties with Russia," French website leglobefrance.fr writes, according to Caliber.Az.

"Algeria is one of the largest buyers of Russian arms, and it is not embarrassed by this (as the war in Ukraine showed: 7 billion euros is still a lot of money for the Russian military complex). Algeria has refused to condemn Russia's attempts to annex Ukrainian regions. In September of this year, Algeria took part in the Vostok-2022 joint exercise with Russian troops, and now, in November, there are other joint exercises on the Algerian border with Morocco, literally at the gates of southern Europe.

But no one in Paris is bothered by this: first Emmanuel Macron, then Prime Minister Elisabeth Born, and a group of ministers went on a pilgrimage to Algeria, literally begging that country to increase its gas supplies.

With few exceptions, no one in France was particularly bothered by this desire to be friends with a Russian ally. No one linked these flirtations with the strange resolution passed by the Senate on November 15. This resolution calls for sanctions against Azerbaijan, including an embargo on oil and gas deliveries from that country to the EU.

Azerbaijan appears to be the only real quick alternative to Russian gas supplies to the EU. 'With Russia continuing to militarize its energy supplies, diversifying our energy imports is a top priority for the EU,' the European Commission issued a statement after it reached an agreement with Azerbaijan to increase gas supplies in July of this year.

Azerbaijan plans to increase the volume of gas supplied to Europe from 8.1 billion cubic metres to the expected 12 billion cubic metres by the end of the year. Can you imagine how prices would go up if Azerbaijani gas was banned? Why does Azerbaijan's decision not suit France? Because of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict? But to be honest, most French MPs cannot find these countries on the map. No one in France cares about the real situation in the region. All the French media have categorically ignored a unique event: a petition addressed to the French people and the Senate, signed by 130 thousand Azerbaijanis and their sympathizers on Mesopinions website in just one month, which asks France not to be biased in the South Caucasus conflict. 130 thousand people!

Our media is paying attention to the petition of 2,000 signatures on the same Mesopinions website about the quality of the Internet and the treatment of homeless animals. And the Azerbaijani petition was ignored. What is this - another example of French racism? Or, better yet, a form of assistance to Russia, for which not only the embargo but also any declarative step against a competitor is a political gift amid the brutal war in Ukraine," the French website writes.

Caliber.Az