The two-day state visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Azerbaijan is important from many aspects, especially from the political, economic and cultural-humanitarian point of view.
Russia, one of the most influential countries in the world, maintains its political influence in the world, as well as in the South Caucasus region. Russia is one of the important and main partners in the foreign policy concept that official Baku has been building for years. This partnership has been established on the basis of the principles of equality and non-interference in each other's internal affairs.
The Russian side also prefers exactly these principles in relations with Azerbaijan. Yesterday, Vladimir Putin said in a joint press statement with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev that Russia attaches great importance to the development of multi-faceted friendly relations with Azerbaijan.
"The basis of these relations consists of equality, consideration of each other's interests and, of course, close human and cultural ties that have united our peoples for centuries," said V. Putin.
The political dialogue between the two states reached an even higher level after the signing of the Declaration “On allied interaction between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Russian Federation” by the presidents of Azerbaijan and Russia on February 22, 2022 in Moscow.
Both Baku and Russia are correctly implementing their obligations under this agreement.
One of the most important aspects of Baku-Moscow cooperation is related to the establishment of peace and security in the South Caucasus.
This is especially important in the context of the advancement of the peace process in the South Caucasus and the opening of the Zangazur corridor, which was confirmed in the tripartite declaration.
This factor is also reflected in the opinion stated during President Ilham Aliyev's press statement with Russian leader Putin on August 19 in Baku.
"Stability and security in the entire South Caucasus region in many cases depend on close interaction between Russia and Azerbaijan," the president said in a statement.
Indeed, the better the relations between Azerbaijan, the leading state of the South Caucasus, and Russia, the most important neighbor of the region, the more stable and secure the region will be.
Another important point in the cooperation between the two states as much as the political factor, is related to the economic factors.
The trade turnover between the states reached a record level of USD 4.5 billion in 2023, and this indicator is expected to be renewed this year. In the current situation, Azerbaijan, which has increased the export of agricultural and industrial products to Russia, has faced a sharp increase in the flow of tourists from Russia and transit cargo transportation. This has created conditions for the rise of commercial and economic relations to a new level.
Both official Baku and official Moscow are interested in the development of the North-South transport corridor. This corridor can be a successful alternative to the traditional transport and logistics routes, which are threatened by the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the activities of the Houthis in the Gulf of Aden.
“We are talking about transportation of goods in the amount of 15 million tons and more - up to 30 million tons in a year, and it is completely real. I hope that, in current situation, Russia, Azerbaijan, and also the other participants of this corridor will continue their activity with the joint efforts,” stating this, the President Ilham Aliyev demonstrated relevance of this topic with these thoughts that he said following the meeting with his Russian counterpart.
In parallel, Moscow and Baku successfully cooperate in the international platforms too. Official Baku wants to increase its status and role at Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS, and is receiving an assistance from Moscow which is a member of both organizations. Official Moscow, which supports holding of COP29 in Baku, gets the same positive signals from the Azerbaijani side.
But conducting a close and friendly neighborhood policy with Russia should not mean that Azerbaijan moves away from cooperation with Western countries. Official Baku has always conducted a polygonal policy and never joined any military-political bloc. Amid the geopolitical tension between the west and Russia and Russia-Ukraine war, it has always stood out with its balanced position in accordance with the norms of international law.
Azerbaijan has sent humanitarian aid to Ukraine for the multiple times and has managed to establish a constructive dialogue with this country’s political leadership. President Ilham Aliyev's ability to establish an ideal balance in relations with countries of different poles in difficult geopolitical conditions has been accepted by both Ukrainian and Russian experts and the public. Therefore, it seems realistic that Azerbaijan, which was the chairman of the Non-Aligned Movement and is known as a place of dialogue and peace in the international world, is a mediator in the Russia-Ukraine conflict and contributes to the end of the conflict. The international community can benefit from Azerbaijan's experience in this field.
As a result of President Ilham Aliyev's efforts, it is accepted by everyone that Azerbaijan has not become an arena of conflict between the West and Russia, like a number of post-Soviet countries.
Against the backdrop of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, another important aspect of official Baku's relations with the West is related to gas transportation.
So, since February 2022, the European Union, which aims to diversify the transportation of energy carriers, is interested in increasing cooperation with Azerbaijan in order to fill the gap in this field after completely refusing the purchase of Russian gas through Ukraine.
Statements from EU officials and senior Chinese diplomats also confirm that it was Ukraine and the European Union that asked Azerbaijan to implement this project. That is, this project is necessary for Ukraine itself and the European Union.
Azerbaijan also takes this step based on the request of the parties. Official Baku is trying to prevent emergence of energy crisis in Europe or any other region, and if there is a request for help, it supports it within its capabilities.
Thus, it should be noted once again that thanks to the wise and far-sighted policy and diplomacy of President Ilham Aliyev in the international arena, thanks to the balanced and mutual respect-based approach with Russia, Azerbaijan has successfully solved the historical missions, especially the issue of territorial integrity.
In this context, the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Azerbaijan can be considered an important contribution to the further strengthening of peace and security in the South Caucasus.
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