Andrei Klimov: anti-Azerbaijani antics of media do not reflect the position of the Russian Federation

The images of the internationally unrecognized borders of Azerbaijan [where there is no Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding areas of the territories occupied by Armenia], which occasionally appear on Russian TV channels, in any case should not be regarded as reflecting the position of the Russian government and the Russian Federation as a whole, the Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs, a representative of the executive body of the Perm Territory, Andrey Klimov, said today on the program ‘Tribune’.

The senator noted that if a media source is a professional one and if its staff up to the management values their reputation and respects the decision of the Russian authorities, they should not do this. "Sure, we have freedom of speech, and it concerns not only individuals, but also organizations, but we must understand that it is a question not of Mars or the moon, where there is no life, but of the lives of specific people, and their opinions must be respected, because for someone this is just a couple of minutes of his life, and for others this is something for which they are willing to give their lives," he pointed out.

"However, some journalists, and there are a lot of such cases, alas, either because of lack of proper knowledge or due to lack of any moral and ethical qualities, refer to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict as if someone poured water out of a glass and you can take a rag and wipe it, that it is no problem at all. But for the parties of the conflict, this is a problem of the reality of life and death. Such tricks are a question for the owners of the media with regard to the legal consequences, that someone from the party whose interests were affected, must go to court," Andrei Klimov said.

According to him, similar unprofessional or unethical behavior can be observed in the information field of Russia pretty often. "I'm in this position every day, when some people around me utter something in public. Sometimes you just want to get up and get away from the table, so you are not associated with the people who are close, and sometimes you have to take action and find out how these people in general could get to this particular platform and why this was necessary. In general, I would like to remind you that the designation of Azerbaijan without the occupied territories, of course, is not the position of the Russian government or the Russian parliament," the Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs said.

"It is important that the people for whom the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is really an issue of life and death still do not resort to such antics as hostile actions on the part of our state, whatever position someone is taking. In such cases, we are dealing, if not with a misunderstanding, then with a lack of understanding, and certainly they do not show someone's professionalism. But I do not think it's axclever or covert diversion, I am not inclined to think so. It is necessary to learn how to filter the information, although I do not see anything good in these incidents," Andrei Klimov concluded.