Alexei Vlasov: "Ilham Aliyev tends to occupy a clear and careful position at the junction of interests of Russia, West and other big players"

The relations between Russia and Azerbaijan have improved through the past several months, said Alexei Vlasov, Russian political scientist, general director of the information-analytical center to study sociopolitical processes in the post-Soviet area.

"Moscow declaration" is among the main indicators of that Moscow tends from the extremely careful position towards the Karabakh conflict to real peacekeeping mission. It is difficult to say whether this transfer will be successful. There are many subjective factors in this issue and not everything depends here on the good will of the mediators, no matter whether Russia, Turkey or the United States are implied", said he.

According to Vlasov, in a certain sense Russia and Azerbaijan are rivals on the energy market, but so far this competition is quite friendly or at least not aggressive.

I think in conditions of sharp deterioration of relations between Russia and Georgia, Moscow will be quite satisfied with the multi-directional policy of Azerbaijan, which has repeatedly proved effective, noted the political scientist.

"The working leadership of Russia, I think, is quite positive on the logics of most decisions of Ilham Aliyev. In our quite subjective time, it is a very important achievement, as it is obvious from the Russian-Ukrainian conflict

tht most factors of relations are defined by only subjective arguments. The subjectivism is much lower in the relations between Russia and Azerbaijan and it is always easier to understand one's neighbor and a partner in the framework of the pragmatic logics".

As for whether he views Azerbaijan as pro-Russian or pro-western, Vlasov said he would never call Azerbaijan a pro-Russian state, but he is skeptical about statements that Azerbaijan is a pro-western state.

"Ilham Aliyev tends to occupy a clear and careful position at the junction of interests of Russia, West and other big players. This is a choice of the Azerbaijani leader and I think that Moscow understand and accepts it.

/Day.Az/