The two-day visit to Azerbaijan by the third person in the hierarchy of the political power in Russia – the head of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko – wasn’t widely covered by the mass media. In general, protocol reports on meetings were made. However, it is wrong to pass over this event entirely.
This was not Matvienko's first time in Baku . She visited Azerbaijan in 2004, when she was the governor of St.-Petersburg. The visit was remarkable for members of the delegation and journalists. According to them, it differed positively from boring Tehran, where Matvienko arrived after Baku. Moreover, it was successful from economic point of view. The governess succeeded to promote interests of St.-Petersburg business in Azerbaijan.
The current visit didn’t presuppose a round trip and was far from economy. But Matvienko didn’t leave discussion of economic issues. In Baku she stated that it is time for signing an agreement on mutual security of investments between Azerbaijan and Russia.
According to the head of the Federal Council, the document will enable intensification of investment, which will be a serious help to business and lead to reduction of risks and additional security. Valentina Matvienko said that turnover between two countries came to the level of $2.8 billion last time. Matvienko noted that the progress in relations should be supported by direct contacts between Azerbaijan and the Russian regions. She set an example of Dagestan as positive experience.
In Baku they discussed inter-parliamentary cooperation, general legislative ideas, integration of law development, necessity of extension contacts between parliamentary committees, and so on. It is important, according to the Russian side, for effective cooperation at the regional level. Two states should be interested in cooperation in the environmental sphere, including ecological problems of the Caspian Sea.
The talks in Baku touched upon the acutest problem of Azerbaijan – settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Matvienko noted that the parliaments of Azerbaijan, Russia and Armenia can contribute to settlement of the conflict. “We should focus on organization of contacts, meetings between representatives of intelligence and culture of three countries. Our aim is establishing the atmosphere of trust. It is impossible to find a practical solution of the problem without trust,” Matvienko said after the bilateral meeting with the speaker of the Azerbaijani parliament Oktai Asadov.
According to her, Russia, as a co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, does its best to find a solution of the problem. Matvienko reminded that President Medvedev initiated several trilateral meetings of presidents of Azerbaijan, Armenia and Russia for discussion of the format of a mutually beneficial solution.
Yugeny Krishtalev. Exclusively to VK
