Michael Gunter: Azerbaijan could be the facilitator of US-Russian cooperation in the Caucasus

A veteran US analyst on Middle East and Eurasia Security issues Michael Gunter, professor of Political Science at the Tennessee Technological University, characterizes the UN’s possible role in the solving the frozen conflicts, including Nagorno-Karabakh, ahead of the General Assembly’s upcoming session.

“The UN GA has always been the UN format for discussing frozen conflicts, while the Security Council is the place to discuss more immediate, pressing ones”, he said while commenting on possible discussions regarding the Karabakh conflict during the Assembly’s upcoming 66th sessions.

“I think it is good to remind the world of the continuing Nagorno-Karabakh problem, but I see little hope of a peaceful settlement in the near future”, he mentioned.

Nevertheless, Prof. Gunter believes that the West should play a strong role because it bears the overall primary influence in the world today for international stability.

Asked what are the main differences between the Russian and Western approaches to the former Soviet republics, the analyst underscored that, the West has no such special claims to them.

“Russia of course looks upon the former Soviet republics as it’s near abroad or areas of special interest. This is sort of like Russia’s Monroe Doctrine. The Monroe Doctrine was an American doctrine that gave the US a special role in the affairs of the Western Hemisphere and was even mentioned in Article 21 of the Covenant of the League of Nations”, he added.

In the meanwhile, when it comes to the Russia-US cooperation, the analyst says it is in long-term interests of Washington and Moscow to cooperate, “but in the short term they both are often tempted not to for their own short term advantages”.

What is Azerbaijan’s role in this cooperation then? “In principle, Azerbaijan could be the facilitator of US-Russian cooperation in the Caucasus”, Mr. Gunter says.


/APA/