By Vestnik Kavkaza
These days RIA Novosti and the political scientific center “North-South” are holding the School of Journalist Skill in Baku. “Our main task is to give new approaches, new ideas, and new instruments of working to young Azerbaijani journalists who are working in the Russian-speaking segment of Azerbaijani mass media,” the head of the center “North-South” Alexei Vlasov said, emphasizing that this is a mutually educating and mutually beneficial process.
In Baku Russian historians and political scientists presented to the local House of Russian Book several books which, according to the head of the International Council of the Association of the Russian Society Researches, Gennady Bordyugov, “reflect real facts from our common history, Unfortunately, today history is being falsified. It is a very negative factor for learning the past and the future generations. If no truthful connection with the past exists, unbelief and immorality appear. We must not allow this happening.” Expressing his attitude to establishing unified textbooks by Russia and Azerbaijan, Bordyugov noted that disputable moments should be discussed at the academic level, firstly.
Now visitors of the Baku House of Russian Book can read and look at “Pushkin: articles and notes” by Yuri Lotman, “Russian Abroad and Challenges of the Global World. We Wait for Changes” by Stanislav Yepifantsev, “Finalists – Russian Sport in Modern Photography,” “RIAphoto,” “Soviet Heritage: Reflection of the past in social and economic practices of modern Russia,” “History of Baku Oil Industry and the Second Oil Boom” by Ismail Agakishiyev, and several books by Gennady Bordyugov – “October. Stalin. Victory. The Cult of Anniversaries in Memory Space”, “Memory Wars in the Post-Soviet Area”, “Expected Revolution Will Never Come”, “Yesterday Tomorrow: how “national histories” were written in the USSR and how they are written today.”
Moreover, it appears that the center “North-South” will open its office in Baku in the nearest future. It has several tasks. Firstly, it is providing informal communication in the expert society and media structures between Russia and Azerbaijan. Secondly, it is a humanitarian and educational direction of contacts between two countries, establishment of the unified socio-cultural information space. Thirdly, it is establishment of communication between young people of two countries. Fourthly, it is foundation of dialogue platforms for development of the communication dynamics.
Speaking at one of such dialogue platforms – “Information picture of the region in the mass media of the Caspian states” – Alexei Vlasov stated his opinion on the processes happening in the South Caucasus today. According to him, “a circle pit started in the Armenian-Azerbaijani dialogue on Nagorno-Karabakh when both sides repeat statements which have been said earlier.” As for the dialogue between Moscow and Tbilisi, according to Vlasov, Georgia has to admit Saakashvili’s blame in the August events of 2008; hostile rhetoric should be eliminated from the media; discussion of recognition of independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia should be postponed; and the initiative of reconstruction of relations should come from the Georgian side. In 2013 Russian-Georgian relations will normalize, but only at the civil society level – a humanitarian and educational dialogue.
