Aravot Daily interviewed the editor-in-chief of World Economy, Alexander Sosnowski.
He believes that Europe has double standards regarding Belarus and Azerbaijan. The leadership of both countries has been in the hands of one family for 26 years, but the European Union has a different response for both. “Azerbaijan is a separate issue that Europe ties to Turkey. They do not see Azerbaijan as a separate country that they need to negotiate with or that they need to regard as a separate player. Azerbaijan is always considered along with Turkey’s interests and intentions, and it always plays the role of Ankara’s little brother. And when the European Union makes a decision, Turkey is always in the shadows, which they always think about. I think that it is a difficult issue with Artsakh and Armenia. The European Union does not understand what side to take because, when they start to think about that issue, the issue of recognizing the Armenian Genocide comes to the surface, but that is a difficult subject for the EU. They consider it to be a resolved issue, but everyone knows that the Serbia-Kosovo issue has not been resolved, and that is a chain reaction. That is why they try not to delve too deeply into that issue. There are some things that they need to speak about openly, but they are afraid to do so and they are afraid to call things by name. This is despite the fact that I have seen the way the OSCE and other observer organizations speak. They speak intelligently, they speak about violations of human rights, they speak about violations of the right to self-determination, and they speak about war crimes. I am generally silent about Azerbaijan and Turkey, but this is a serious issue.”
He continued, “Double standards are normal. And when a country is blamed by another country for upholding double standards, such as Israel or Russia, the other country knows that it also suffers from the same thing. They operate based on double, triple, and quadruple standards. As the Germans say, countries do not base their neighbors or colleagues on whether or not they like them, but only based on the principle of whether the relationship is beneficial or not. If it is beneficial to accept Azerbaijan’s position, they will do so. That will change tomorrow; they will be on Armenia’s side tomorrow and completely accept Armenia’s position. That is why it is necessary to adopt such policies with them; you should not bet on honesty or dignity. You should only think about your own interests and show what you or another country considers to be beneficial. And that is when they understand that this position is not based on empty words, but it is specified- money, human rights, or other issues that can be included. That is why it is important to establish relations by speaking about your interests and keep your own aspirations practical, including in your relations with the EU.”
Ami Chichakyan
