President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliev criticized his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron for getting involved in Georgia, saying: “You can see Macron’s ears sticking out, he is restless in his own country, and he has to get involved in Georgia.” In a lengthy interview with one of the key Russian propagandists and a Director General of the Russian state-controlled and funded TV network Russia Today, Dmitry Kiselyov, which was broadcast live on December 18, Aliev discussed developments in Georgia, slammed President Biden’s administration and USAID, and spoke about the South Caucasus region, among other issues.
Asked about his assessment of the developments in Georgia, Ilham Aliev said: “I see that the situation in Georgia is stabilizing and we are happy about that.” He added: “Georgia is our most important partner and close friend. Our peoples have lived in peace and harmony for many centuries. Therefore, destabilization or the threat of destabilization in Georgia is as harmful for Azerbaijan as it is for Georgia”.
He then noted: “Therefore, for our part, we are striving towards and doing everything to ensure that the situation in Georgia is politically stable and that Georgia develops successfully.”
In this context he denounced the “external influence” saying: “It has turned out that there are thousands of NGOs working in Georgia that receive funding from the West, and there are tens of thousands of people, if not more, who work in these organizations or receive salaries there.”
Recalling the Azerbaijani experience in this regard, he said: “And we know what it is, because there was a period here in our country when the same grant-makers and grant-eaters felt free to act as they wished, but we stopped it. And that is why any grant that is given by any structure, whether it is Azerbaijani or foreign, has to be registered and the relevant authorities decide whether to allow it or not.”
He noted that “aid should be unobtrusive,” adding that President Biden’s administration will go down in history for its intrusiveness. He complained that USAID insists on helping while we say: “Thank you, we don’t need your help.” He added: “USAID wants to help, but for some reason not where we need it”. Responding to Kiselyov’s comment that Russia had banned USAID altogether, he said: “Did you ban it? Well, you did the right thing.”
Speaking about the funding of media and civil society organizations from abroad, he said: “That is why we have put things in order here. For example, Azerbaijani media cannot be financed by foreign sources, not even by 1%. Well, what for? We do not finance media in the USA, do we? So, why should then they finance our media? They are already pouring mud on our people and our country day and night, and casting shadow on our victory over Armenia through their handy resources, such as Voice of America and Radio Liberty.”
Allegedly referring to the Foreign Agents’ law, and Aliev noted: “Therefore, it seems to me that a certain time was lost in Georgia to streamline this,” and lamented that this was done somewhat late: “And when it was done, as they say, the train had already departed”
Azerbaijani President then noted: “But it is good that now the situation is moving towards stability. And again you see, Macron’s ears sticking out, the man is restless in his own country, and he has to get involved in Georgia.” (In the interview he further criticized France for its policies in the former colonies, slamming French President for “colonialist” policies and speaking at length about the “hideous face of French colonialism.”)
Commenting further on Georgia, he said that the issue of Georgia “is much bigger than it seems, it is a battle for the Caucasus, if I may say so.” He went on: ” Armenia, it is clear where it is going. It has de-facto withdrawn from the CSTO and, according to our verified information, the only reason why it has not yet de-jure withdrawn from the CSTO is that they have not yet received a signal from the State Department. As soon as they get it, they will leave.”
He then noted that “Azerbaijan is an independent player, qualified enough and able to stand up for itself”. And he concluded: “Therefore, Georgia is an important factor in the struggle for the Caucasus. What will it be like – will it be traditional, based on our Caucasian values?”
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