Berlin held the third symposium on stability and security in the South Caucasus on February 26, dedicated to the Khojaly tragedy.Many high-ranking politicians attend the symposium every year, it has turned into a fixed German platform for regular talks about regional problems of the South Caucasus.The event organized by the German-Azerbaijani Forum, Azerbaijani embassy in Germany, SOCAR and the German-Atlantic Society has been participated by about 20 members of the German parliament, many diplomats and economic figures.
Speaking at the forum, Bundestag Vice President Johannes Singhammer said: "Azerbaijan and Germany are connected by diverse common interests in the energy sector, maintenance of stability, security and peace in the South Caucasus and beyond. It was emphasized by the Bundestag in the resolution passed in May 2009, which has fully lost all its significance since then. It confirmed territorial integrity of South Caucasus states.
The bilateral relations between our countries are partner. I would like to remind that Azerbaijan opened its first embassy after restoring independence in 1992 in Germany. It is a sign of special close, friendly partnership between our countries. The Berlin visit of President Aliyev, when he met with Chancellor Angela Merkel, and their joint participation in the Munich Security Forum, emphasize the closeness of our ties. I think that the potential of German-Azerbaijani relations is far from being fully exploited, and gives us many opportunities. Three quarters of German trade turnover with South Caucasus states belong to Azerbaijan.
Looking at the geopolitical situation, there are many concerning processes that need more intensive cooperation between our countries. On this year's October 3, we will celebrate the 25th anniversary of the reunification of Germany. This event is a gift of history, a miracle. We thought that wars and conflicts in Europe were history. Unfortunately, today, we need to state that the war returned to Europe. It boilsa thousand kilometers east of Berlin. Now, the truce regime has come, and we hope that the truce would gradually turn into full-fledged peace."
Meanwhile, in Singhammer's opinion, "we see a great threat represented by Islamic terrorist organizations spreading from the Middle East Region to West Africa. They call themselves the Islamic State, or Boko Haram in West Africa, but their goals and methods are quite similar and disgusting. People put in cages are burned alive or beheaded. It is a new unprecedented challege before us. It is a conflict between a civilization and an anti-civilization. And all civilized states need to unite against further spread of the terrorism. Cooperation today is more needed than before."
The vice president of Bundestag mentioned economic cooperation: "Azerbaijan is a country rich with resources, having the most important geopolitical value, in particular, for energy security of Germany. Germany is currently importing oil from Azerbaijan for over 2 billion euros, which makes Azerbaijan the sixth most important oil supplier of Germany. In late September 2013, a set of European energy companies, including German E.ON signed long-term contracts on supplies of Azerbaijani gas. Delivery of Caspian gas via the Southern Corridor will become a contribution to maintenance of energy security of Europe, which we welcome. In four years, Azerbaijani gas will reach Europe in a volume of 10 billion cubic meters annually via the Trans-Adriatic Gas Pipeline. It has special value for us, and the federal government of Germany has expressed its active support to the Southern Gas Corridor numerous times.
Singhammer noted that Baku and Berlin "support the integral contacts on the civic level, this includes our political foundations effectively operating on a transparent basis. As Chancellor Angela Merkel noted at a meeting with President Ilham Aliyev, Germany is very interested in German foundations and other organizations continuing work in Azerbaijan at a protected legal basis. I think that it is a very important aspect.
"For over a year, I have the honour to chair the parliamentary friendship group between Germany and the South Caucasus. It is not an easy task, consiering the states united by the group," noted CDP member Karin Sternz. 'Azerbaijan is about the size of Austria, Georgia fits in Bavaria, Armenia is 12 times smaller than Germany. The total population of the countries is about 17 million people, like in our federal land of North Rhine-Westphalia. Why are so relatively few people cannot peacefully coexist with each other, and why can we not move the process from the gridlock?" wonders Karin Sternz, emphasizing the complicated regional problem of the South Caucasus.
Then, the MP described her meetings with Armenian representatives: "I had negotiations with the permanent plenipotentiary representative of Armenia to Germany, who tried "to open my eyes" on the world. It was very unpleasant because I originate from a system where people make their opinion once. At the end of the meeting, the Armenian diplomat states: "Fraud Sternz, you are obliged to resolve the Karabakh issue." A responded to that: "It is not a problem at all. Return the occupied territories back, and it will be solved."
The representative of the ruling party reprimanded the Armenian side for reluctance to have a constructive dialogue: "When President Ilham Aliyev arrives to the Munich Security Conference, and his colleague Sargsyan refuses to negotiate, we have a certain understanding of where we are. And I am confident that we will not resolve the conflict this way in the near future. Numerous meetings are needed, long, scrupulous negotiations." Karin Sternz complained about the dual standards used by the Council of Europe towards Azerbaijan. The MP noted that Azerbaijan was actively arming itself to prevent repetition of history. "It is the right position that needs supporting. The country should stay protected. Armenia should not make even one step forward," said the Bundestag member.
SOCAR Vice President Elshad Nasirov recalled that the foreign minister of Bosnia and Herzegovina had compared the Khojaly tragedy with the massacre in Srebrenica at a meeting in Munich a few weeks ago. He added that Azerbaijan was still at war because it had only signed a truce with Armenia in 1994. Nasirov noted that Armenian forces should withdraw according to resolutions of the UNSC.
