It is the feeling of being isolated from the Armenian-Turkish process that accounts for Baku’s criticism against Washington. Since it is Washington that is sponsoring the process, all the stones are being cast at the United States, Andrey Areshev, Deputy Director of the Strategic Culture Foundation, told NEWS.am.

According to him, by making the statements Baku aims at making it clear for Washington that it may lose an important regional player, Azerbaijan. “Thus Baku makes its clear it may, if necessary, change its foreign policy orientation toward Moscow,” Areshev said. The expert pointed out that Baku’s statements are tactical and temporary ones – Baku is trying to find a partner able to help resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in Azerbaijan’s favor.

Areshev stressed that, despite its criticism against Washington, Azerbaijan is successfully integrating into NATO agencies. Moreover the state has even made as great progress in this process as Georgia. “Azerbaijan’s integration into NATO has reached such a point that no statements can impede it, to say nothing of the statements not followed by relevant actions,” the expert said.

NEWS.am reminds readers that Ali Gasanov, Head of the Public and Political Department, Presidential Administration of Azerbaijan, recently made a statement critical of official Washington. His statement was followed by one made by Novruz Mammadov, Head of the Foreign Relations Department, Presidential Administration of Azerbaijan. The latter reproached the U.S. with holding a pro-Armenian position not only on the Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenian-Turkish processes, but also on humanitarian and financial issues. One could assume from Mammadov’s statements that Armenia is the USA’s major strategic ally in the region, and Washington, in defiance of its interests, is doing nothing but thinks of how to help Armenia.

T.P.