Pan-Turkism ideology advocated by Caucasian Tatars — thereafter called Azerbaijanians brought about Armenian massacres, Director of the Center for Caucasus Studies at MGIMO Vladimir Zakharov said, speaking at the Jan. 19 seminar dedicated to 20th anniversary of massacres in Baku.

According to him, though Bolshevik Party banned activities of all nationalist groups, nationalism has always existed in Azerbaijan. Moreover, hatred against Armenians passed on from generation to generation and in present Azerbaijan the image of Armenian as an enemy is created at the national level.

Speaking of the Soviet leadership stance in the first years of Karabakh conflict, Zakharov stated that Mikhail Gorbachev was handling a complex problem of the Soviet Union collapse. As a result he adopted a wait-and-see attitude advantageous to Azerbaijani side.

The expert also pointed out the weaknesses of Armenian authorities in conveying the truth of Karabakh conflict to international community. Zakharov emphasized that counteraction policy against Azerbaijan’s misinformation should be carried out at the state level. In particular, a special fund should be created to translate the appropriate literature into foreign languages.

A.G.