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ANKARA: Azerbaijan's Balkan Policy

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  • ANKARA: Azerbaijan's Balkan Policy

    AZERBAIJAN'S BALKAN POLICY

    Today's Zaman, Turkey
    Oct 2 2013

    by Hamza Karcic*
    0 2 October 2013 /

    One intriguing trend in the Balkans over the past several years
    has been the new and increasingly visible Azerbaijani presence and
    activism in the region.

    The appearance of this new state actor in the region has been
    attracting attention. The Caspian state's Balkan policy has several
    characteristics: high-level official visits to Baku and Azerbaijani
    officials' visits to the Balkans, the convening of business forums,
    and the construction and restoration of parks in Balkan countries
    that contain statues of famous Azerbaijani historical figures. What
    are the aims of Azerbaijan in the Balkans? Based on the trends in the
    relationships between Azerbaijan and the Balkan states over the past
    five years, several aims can be discerned.

    First, Azerbaijan is aiming to widen support for its sovereignty
    and territorial integrity. This takes the shape of seeking
    official statements by Balkan political leaders about Azerbaijan
    or parliamentary resolutions from Balkan nations. The aim of this
    effort is to garner support and political allies in the conflict over
    Nagorno-Karabakh. The Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina
    in early 2013 adopted a resolution supporting Azerbaijan's territorial
    integrity. Serbian leaders have publicly supported Azerbaijan's
    sovereignty, and Azerbaijan has refused to recognize the independence
    of Kosovo.

    Second, Azerbaijan aims to institutionalize the memory of the massacre
    of ethnic Azeris in the town of Khojaly. This atrocity was committed
    in early 1992 by Armenian troops and has left a wound of sorrow in the
    Azerbaijani collective memory. In early 2012, an Azerbaijani-Bosnian
    friendship park opened in Sarajevo that is dedicated to the victims
    of Khojaly and Srebrenica.

    Third is the promotion of Azerbaijan's historical and cultural
    heritage. A statue to Azerbaijan's first president, Heydar Aliyev, was
    built in Belgrade. Bucharest also boasts a park that bears the name of
    Azerbaijan's first president. In Podgorica, a Baku street was opened
    recently and a statue of Azerbaijani poet Huseyn Cavid was erected.

    Fourth is the promotion of Azerbaijani investments in the region. At
    this stage, it is too early to judge this aspect of Azerbaijan's
    role in the Balkans. If the heralded investments were to materialize,
    it would be a significant new trend in Azerbaijan's presence in the
    Balkans. So far, business forums have been held in Azerbaijan and the
    various Balkan states. Substantially, Azerbaijan approved a loan to
    Serbia worth 300 million euros for the construction of a 40-kilometer
    section of highway. By far the most ambitious announced investment
    is the 90-year lease of a property and the construction of a luxury
    resort in Kumbor on the Montenegrin coast. There has also been talk
    of Azerbaijani firms taking part in the construction of the Corridor
    Vc highway in Bosnia.

    Of the Balkan states, Serbia stands out in its relations with
    Azerbaijan. Presidents Boris Tadic and Tomislav Nikolic visited
    Azerbaijan while Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev visited Belgrade.

    Leaders of both countries speak of a "strategic partnership." Indeed,
    only Serbia has so far obtained a major loan from Azerbaijan. On the
    other hand, Azerbaijani relations with Croatia do not seem to have
    the same impetus as Azerbaijani-Serbian relations. Over the last two
    years, Bosnia has also taken steps to further develop relations with
    Azerbaijan. Member of the Presidency Bakir Izetbegovic and Foreign
    Minister Zlatko Lagumdzija both visited Baku. However, unlike Serbia
    or Croatia, Azerbaijan does not have an embassy in Sarajevo but a
    diplomatic representative. The development of Azerbaijani-Bosnian
    relations will require more high-level visits by both sides as well
    as the opening of an Azerbaijani embassy in Sarajevo.

    --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    *Hamza Karcic is in the faculty of political science at the University
    of Sarajevo.

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