19 March 2025, 23:58
Azeri analysts assess chance to improve Baku-Moscow relations
Russia is seeking to normalize relations with Azerbaijan after the AZAL plane crash near Aktau: the decision to install a monument to Geidar Aliev and Valentina Matviyenko's visit to Baku were Russia's initiatives to warm relations up, analysts believe.
The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on February 27, Ramzan Kadyrov announced that he would award the surviving Embraer E190 flight attendants, Zulfugar Asadov and Aidan Ragimli. He also expressed condolences to the President of Azerbaijan and victims’ relatives. The Azeri Govt has treated the above awarding and Kadyrov's condolences as belated but acceptable.
On December 25, 2024, an Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) plane crashed in Kazakhstan while flying from Baku to Grozny. There were 62 passengers and five crew members on board, 29 people survived.
Azerbaijan is awaiting the official results of the inquiry into the crash, but is aiming to improve relations with the Russian Federation, Rafik Ismailov, a member of the Russian-Azerbaijani Expert Council, has told the “Kommersant”. This is how he commented on the visit to Baku of the Chairperson of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Valentina Matviyenko.
She has expressed her condolences to Ilham Aliev, Azeri President, in connection with the plane crash.
Ms Matviyenko's visit to Baku is intended to regulate the countries’ interrelations, Niyazi Niyazov, a historian and an expert on the politics of South-Caucasian states, believes.
"In this way, Baku can signal to Moscow that it is ready to build relations on a reciprocal basis," Mr Niyazov told the “Svobodnaya Pressa” (Free Press) outlet.
The name in Russian has been removed from the façade of the building where the “Russian House” in Baku is located. It has suspended its activities following the demand of the Azeri Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA). Analysts believe that the Baku's demand to close the "Russian House" was a way to put pressure on Moscow, seeking Russia's admission of its guilt in the AZAL plane crash and payment of compensations to victims.
Niyazi Niyazov has stressed that Russia is also taking other steps to improve mutual relations. "A decision was made to set up a monument to Geidar Aliev in Moscow, and talks are underway about holding days of Azeri culture in Russia. Thus, the negativity that arose after the plane crash ... is gradually being smoothed out," he said.
In his turn, Rizvan Guseinov, an analyst, has doubted that Russian-Azeri relations could return to the previous level. In his opinion, the level of trust of the Azerbaijani authorities in Russia has significantly decreased after the plane crash.
This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on March 19, 2025 at 10:38 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.
Source: Caucasian Knot
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