Of course, during the Russian leader’s visit to Azerbaijan the sides will discuss Russia’s clearly stating its position on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Avaz Gasanov, the Azerbaijani coordinator at the Civil Forum of the EU Eastern Partnership (EaP) project, told NEWS.am, responding to a question concerning the priority of the Nagorno-Karabakh problem during Dmitry Medvedev’s visit to Baku on September 2.

Although Azeri officials are not severely critical of the Russian-Armenian protocol on the Russian military base, they are well ware of its influence on further development of bilateral relations and on the state of Russian mediatory mission in the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process. “In this context, the two Presidents will discuss the ways of settling the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, though no press release may follow. Russia is expected to hint that Azerbaijan’s militant rhetoric will hinder a peaceful settlement of the conflict,” Gasanov said.

He thinks Azerbaijan will express a wish that “Russia take a fair position on the conflict and press Armenia into vacating the occupied lands.”

The expert emphasized the ceremonial aspect of Medvedev’s visit. “The Russian President may make statements for maintaining balance. However, no statements to justify cooperation with Armenia or compensate for this cooperation are expected,” he said.