The independent policy pursued by Baku often entails attacks on Azerbaijan by the Western politicians, human rights activists and the media. Usually this happens on the eve of some major events, for example, the First European Games. This policy is very ambivalent: on the one hand, the West welcomes Azerbaijan's actions aimed at ensuring the European energy security, on the other, accuses Baku of the whole bag of tricks.
Azerbaijan has always been skeptical about the activities of civil society institutions receiving foreign aid. Several years ago, the information appeared that among the donors, financing NGOs engaged in the ‘anti-state activities’, the Soros Foundation was especially active, by allocating to the Azerbaijani NGOs 7.6 million manat in the framework of 625 agreements. The Soros Foundation did not remain in debt, although it "fired" with delay. On September 4-5, 2017, the Center for the Study of Corruption and Organized Crime, BBC News and the Guardian published absurd materials about "Azerbaijan, managing a secret dirty fund worth $ 3 billion."
In response, the press service of the President of Azerbaijan issued a statement according to which, neither the president nor his family is in any way linked with the accusations mentioned in the publications, and attempts to involve the president and his family in this case are absolutely unjustified, biased and provocative.
"We know that behind this are George Soros and his assistants who have won the image of scammers, fakers, adventurers, liars, campaigning against Azerbaijan and its leadership on the international arena. Today, the dirty acts of George Soros must be seriously investigated. The Armenian lobby working with him conducts a dirty campaign against the President of Azerbaijan and his family. However, despite these efforts, they proved to be vain. The fact that one of the authors of the article published in the Guardian is Dina Nagapetyan of Armenian origin, once again shows that these filthy accusations is another abominable act of the Armenian world,” the message reads.
It's not surprising that the ultranationalists of Armenia did not miss the opportunity to create another fake. However, it is worth acknowledging that most of the Armenian society does not share this aggressive attitude and is determined to restore peace with its closest neighbor. Especially the Baku Armenians, who still remember the best years spent in Baku, where they shared joy and sorrow with their fellow countrymen of different nationalities.
However, it is surprising that despite the obvious bias of published materials, the western fake news was reprinted by the respected Russian media - MIA Russia Today and Kommersant. Such an attention of the respectable Russian media to the Western furphy looks even stranger in the light of their assertion of the Russian interests in the heightened information confrontation with the West. Recall that a couple of years ago, the General Prosecutor's Office of Russia recognized the Open Society and Assistance Foundation, founded by American financier George Soros, as "undesirable organizations." According to the Russian authorities, the activities of these foundations threaten the country's constitutional system.
Against the backdrop of the strengthening Western anti-Russian sanctions, where the UK plays first fiddle, the caddish closing of the Russian diplomatic and trade missions in the US and suspension of the issuance of non-immigrant US visas to Russian citizens, the Russian media's close attention to the ‘customized’ publications of the Western media, discrediting Moscow's partners, is alarming.
Instead of supporting its strategic ally, the Russian media reprints the slander of their British colleagues and turns to the relevant experts to confirm the infamous lie.
The Western media has been conducting an information war against Russia for several years, but none of their publications has been reprinted in the Azerbaijani media. The West has done a lot to win over the leadership of Azerbaijan, but President Ilham Aliyev has always remained true to the principles of friendship with Moscow, and in an interview with ‘Russia 24’ he made it clear, that Azerbaijan will support Russia in any situation.
In this regard it is appropriate to recall the words of Dmitry Kiselev, Director General of the Russia Today agency, in an interview with Vestnik Kavkaza: "I would like to note the role of Azerbaijani President Mr. Aliyev. He has such a quality - to keep his word. In our times, the leaders of even major world powers do not pursue this quality, and Aliyev demonstrates something that can be used by others. I think that this predetermines the nature of friendly and trusting relations between Putin and Aliyev. They both know they can always rely on each other, understand and fulfill mutually taken obligations. Aliyev's firmness and, I would say, strategic wisdom of maintaining peace in Azerbaijan guarantee very good prospects for the country and its people. " Today, Sputnik's office successfully operates in Baku and it is doubly surprising that the Kiselev-led Russia Today decided to distribute the western fake news in the Russian media space.
