Azerbaijan too benefits from the Russian military base in Gyumri, Armenia, Vladimir Zharikhin, Deputy Director of the Institute of CIS, told Echo of Moscow (Ekho Moskvy).

According to him, the base prevents the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict from developing into new hostilities.  

In an interview with Echo of Moscow, President of the Academy of Geopolitical Problems, Colonel General Leonid Ivashov said that the long-term agreement is “a victory of strategic pragmatism of both countries.”

He stressed the new agreement seriously reduces the risk of Azerbaijan’s attempts to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in a military way. A diplomatic way must be found for the agreement not to affect Russian-Azerbaijani relations.

On August 20, in Yerevan, The RF and RA Ministers of Defense, Anatoly Serdyukov and Seyran Ohanyan, signed a protocol prolonging the deployment of Russian military base #102 in Armenia for up to 49 years.