South Caucasus Weekly Review looks into major developments in Armenia, Georgia & Azerbaijan

This project of Azernews is designed to cover major
weekly developments in the South Caucasus nations.

HIGHLIGHTS

  • Aliyev, Pashinyan, Putin to be able to talk in frames of CIS
    informal summit – Kremlin
  • Foreign nationals buying real estate in Armenia are mainly
    Russians
  • Military aid provided to Azerbaijan is not used against Armenia
    – US Assistant Secretary of State
  • Citizens of Georgia to do mandatory military service
  • Exemplary partnership between Georgia, Azerbaijan to contribute
    to a more stable south Caucasus – Georgian PM
  • Gender equality is priority of Georgian government – Vice
    Speaker
  • Azerbaijanis protesting outside Shusha against peacekeepers’
    inaction over illegal exploitation in Karabakh
  • Official: Swiss businessmen interested in Azerbaijani
    economy
  • Azerbaijani top diplomat on vitality of peace deal with
    Armenia, lauds Baku-Ankara-Ashgabat summit
  • Baku hosts annual meeting for military attaches

ARMENIA

Aliyev, Pashinyan, Putin to be able to talk in frames of
CIS informal summit – Kremlin

Ilham Aliyev, Vladimir Putin, and Nikol Pashinyan are working to
set up a trilateral meeting, but they will at least be able to
communicate within the framework of the informal summit of the CIS
leaders, according to Russian presidential spokesperson Dmitri
Peskov.

“You know that an informal meeting of the leaders of the CIS
states is expected where at least three leaders will have an
opportunity to talk at least in the margins. What will happen then,
the work is still in process,” Peskov said.

Late in December, St. Petersburg will host the informal
gathering of the CIS leaders.

Foreign nationals buying real estate in Armenia are
mainly Russians

In total, 66,486 real estate transactions were recorded in the
first ten months of 2022 in Armenia, according to the Cadastre
Committee.

The figure is a 3,6% growth compared to 2021’s same period.
Demand has increased and it led to the growth of real estate
prices.

“In October, average apartment prices in Armenia grew 12,9%
compared to 2021’s October. In the provinces the average figure is
19,1%,” Deputy Director of the Cadastre Committee Arman Petrosyan
said.

According to Petrosyan, the real estate market is the first to
respond to changes occurring in the economy. A 14,1% increase in
economic activity over the previous nine months had an effect on
the demand for purchasing power. The market is also being impacted
by mortgage programs with favorable terms.

“Meanwhile, the inflow of foreigners into Armenia has very
insignificant or no impact on the real estate prices in the market.
In the ten months of 2022 foreign nationals bought only 1,581 real
estate properties. This is only 3,6% of all transactions. The
foreign nationals mostly acquired apartments, land areas, or
private houses,” Petrosyan said.

Most of the foreign nationals, who bought real estate in Armenia
are from Russia, followed by the US and Iran. The foreigners mostly
bought real estate in Yerevan, followed by Kotayk.

Selling, inheritance, and mortgages constitute most transactions
in Armenia with 38,3%, 19,3%, and 13% respectively. Most
transactions took place in Yerevan, with over 53,000 transactions,
followed by Kotayk, Armavir, and Ararat. The least real estate
transactions took place in Vayots Dzor (2%).

Military aid provided to Azerbaijan is not used against
Armenia – US Assistant Secretary of State

“During its contacts with Baku, Washington always raises its
concerns about human rights in Azerbaijan,” US Assistant Secretary
of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, Karen Donfried, said
during the House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on US policy in
the Caucasus.

During the hearing, Congressman Jim Costa “raised the issue of
the Armenian prisoners of war and the gross violations of human
rights in Azerbaijan”, asking whether Washington raises these
topics during the talks.

“I can assure you that human rights are a critical part of the
conversation. It is something we focus on very clearly. I spoke
with both foreign ministers last week, and I had a part of my
conversation with Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov of Azerbaijan
focused specifically on human rights. We always raise our pressing
concerns about human rights in Azerbaijan, whether it relates to
reports of arbitrary and unlawful killings in police custody,
torture and cruel, inhuman treatment, lack of independent
judiciary, restrictions on freedom of movement,” Karen Donfried
said in response.

Congressman Jim Costa called unacceptable the fact that the US
government still continues providing military aid to Azerbaijan
despite the human rights violations there.

“I want to be very clear about this: the June 2022 decision to
extend the Waiver of Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act was
taken following a very close review by the inner agency of US
priorities in the region, as well as current and planned assistance
to the government of Azerbaijan,” Karen Donfried said, adding that
they followed very closely the recommendations.

“And we calibrate all security assistance to Azerbaijan to
ensure that it is not used for offensive purposes against Armenia
and does not undermine or hamper ongoing efforts to negotiate a
long-term political settlement to the Nagorno Karabakh region,” she
added.

Karen Donfried said the security assistance given to Azerbaijan
strengthens the ability of peacekeeping forces to help secure
Azerbaijan’s 475-mile border with Iran and provide security for
energy sources critical for US allies in Europe.

“We are providing non-lethal border security assistance,” she
said.

GEORGIA

Citizens of Georgia to do Mandatory Military Service in
MOD

The Prime Minister of Georgia, Irakli Garibashvili stated, that
the mandatory military service has been reviewed, and reform will
take place, with all persons to undergo mandatory military service
only in the Ministry of Defense.

He explained that before this system was scattered and
inefficient.

“We had a conversation with the ministries included in the
security service and we agreed that the mandatory military service
will be completely transferred to the system of the Ministry of
Defense. An effective system will be created- a program lasting
six, eight, and 11 months. It will be intensive military training.
The main goal will be to create a strong reserve,” said the Prime
Minister.

As Garibashvili noted, the project will cost more than 80
million GEL.

He pointed out that the recruitment will be carried out by the
Ministry of Defense instead of the regional ministry. This process
will start in January, but the program will be implemented from
January 1, 2025.

Exemplary partnership between Georgia, Azerbaijan to
contribute to a more stable south Caucasus – Georgian
PM

Georgia and Azerbaijan have solid economic cooperation,
strategic partnership, and, most significantly, friendship, said
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili at a meeting of the
Georgia-Azerbaijan intergovernmental economic committee at the
government administration.

As Irakli Garibashvili pointed out, Georgia-Azerbaijan ties were
unique in recent years and millennia.

“We have a strong relationship and excellent neighborly ties. We
are grateful for the opportunity to host Ilham Aliyev a few weeks
earlier; his visit to Georgia was crucial. We addressed the current
strategic projects and set plans we will continue to discuss
today.

“I’m happy to say that the joint commission’s sessions have
recently grown more active. I had the honour to participate in this
commission last year. I’d also want to highlight that this year
marks the 30th anniversary of the start of diplomatic
relationships.

“Our peoples and countries have perfect understanding and
friendship, and this relationship is growing stronger. I must
emphasize that, via exemplary partnership, we will contribute to a
more stable South Caucasus. This is our shared goal, our shared
ambition to see a stable region that will serve as the foundation
for better economic development and prosperity for our peoples,”
the Prime Minister stated.

The visit of the Azerbaijani delegation to Georgia, according to
Ali Asadov, Prime Minister of the Republic of Azerbaijan, would
contribute to the continuous strengthening of mutually beneficial
cooperation between Azerbaijan and Georgia.

According to him, the relations between Georgia and Azerbaijan
have reached the level of strategic partnership today, and
relations between the two countries are expanding in all
spheres.

“We place a high value on this visit. I think the visit will
contribute to the continued building of Azerbaijan and Georgia’s
mutually beneficial partnership. The intergovernmental commission
meeting is an excellent opportunity to discuss strategies to
strengthen our relationships and expand our fields of cooperation.
Azerbaijan and Georgia have also cooperated on major megaprojects.
We’ll get a chance to talk about it,” Ali Asadov stated.

The history of Azerbaijan-Georgia relations is as centuries-old
as our peoples and nations, said Azerbaijan’s Prime Minister,
stressing that the Georgian and Azerbaijani peoples are bound by
millennia of good neighborliness, mutual respect, and friendly
ties.

“Our nations’ relations have now progressed to the level of
strategic partnership. Our contacts are growing in all areas,
including politics, economy, energy, transportation, culture,
education, military, and others. We support each other to improve
in various sectors, and our relationships are growing in all areas.
I think that the documents signed today with your involvement would
speed up these processes even more,” Azerbaijan’s Prime Minister
said.

Ali Asadov claimed that Azerbaijan and Georgia have always
supported each other on the global level.

“Mr. Prime Minister, we have always backed each other’s
territorial integrity and sovereignty, and our economic relations
are flourishing. Georgia is one of Azerbaijan’s primary trading
partners; our trade turnover climbed by 3% this year. Of course,
given the background of the present pandemic and the issues
confronting the world economy, this development demonstrates that
there is much more potential between our nations, and we will be
able to further strengthen these partnerships,” stated Azerbaijan’s
Prime Minister.

For the record, Prime Minister of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ali
Asadov is paying an official visit to Georgia.

An official welcoming ceremony was held in the administration of
the Government of Georgia.

Gender equality is priority of Georgian government –
Georgian Vice Speaker

“Gender equality is a priority of the Georgian Government, the
priority of our society. We still witness the challenges and
impediments that women encounter at the political theatre, in
political life and the elimination of these impediments is our
common responsibility,” the Vice-Speaker, Archil Talakvadze stated
at the National Gender Equality Conference.

As he noted, the democratic, human rights-based state cannot be
built without the participation of the majority of our population –
women, and girls.

“Reinforcement of the reforms in this direction has never been
as urgent and necessary as today when gender equality is one of the
key EU recommendations, necessary for the reception of the EU
candidate status. The Parliament, naturally, does and will do all
in its power to ensure the fulfillment of the expectations that our
compatriots and partners have towards us in high responsibility and
with the best European experience. Naturally, the will and ambition
of Georgia are to see our country and society European in this
sphere,” he added.

The UN Resident Coordinator, as well as the Ambassadors of
Sweden, the USA, the EU, the UK and Switzerland also addressed the
attendees.

The Conference is being held within the 16-day campaign against
violence with the support of the UN Group of Agencies and
Sweden.

AZERBAIJAN

Azerbaijanis protesting outside Shusha over
peacekeepers’ inaction over illegal exploitation in
Karabakh

On December 12, representatives of non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) of Azerbaijan are holding a protest action
near a post of the Russian peacekeepers outside Shusha, Azernews
reports.

Azerbaijani activists and members of environmental
non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are protesting on a section
of the road controlled by Russian peacekeepers outside Shusha,
calling for an end to environmental terror in the Karabakh economic
region.

The protesters demand that the commander of the Russian
peacekeeping forces, Maj-Gen Andrei Volkov, come to the area. Tents
are being erected in the area by the protesters. In the meantime,
the Russian peacekeepers have dispatched troops and military
equipment to the region.

One of the protesters, who is currently at the center of events,
expressed his opinion on unfolding developments at the venue. “The
main purpose of Azerbaijanis protesting near Shusha is to prevent
illegal exploitation of the country’s natural resources by
Armenia,” military and political expert Telman Qasimov said.

The crowd, according to Qasimov, who is currently in
Shusha among the protesters, is calling for Maj-Gen Andrei Volkov,
the commander of the Russian peacekeeping forces in the region, to
come to the venue.

“We will not leave anywhere until he arrives,” he
said.

To recap, following discussions with the command of the Russian
peacekeeping contingent on December 3 and 7, 2022, Azerbaijani
specialists from the Ministries of Economy, Ecology, and Natural
Resources, the State Service for Property Issues under the Ministry
of Economy, and AzerGold CJSC were to conduct primary monitoring on
illegal exploitation of mineral deposits on Azerbaijani territory.
However, the monitoring failed due to provocation.

Official: Swiss businessmen interested in Azerbaijani
economy

Swiss businessmen are interested in Azerbaijan’s economy, Swiss
Confederation Federal Council for Trade Agreements representative,
State Secretariat for Economic Affairs bilateral economic relations
department head Erwin Bollinger said, Azernews reports.

He made the remarks during the Azerbaijani-Swiss business forum
in Baku on December 14.

Speaking at the forum, he also shared his thoughts on the ways
of expanding cooperation.

“Switzerland intends to continue to support the diversification
of the Azerbaijani economy,” he said.

Erwin Bollinger noted that over recent years, Switzerland has
actively invested in the non-oil sector of Azerbaijan contributing
to economic diversification.

“We aim to develop bilateral trade relations, as well as
increase the volume of investments. Over the past eleven months,
the volume of trade between our countries has reached €365
million,” he added.

Moreover, noting that this year marks the 30th anniversary of
establishing bilateral relations between Azerbaijan and the Swiss
Confederation, First Deputy Economy Minister Elnur Aliyev spoke
about economic and trade relations between the countries.

He stressed that the business forum would contribute to
expanding economic partnerships and creating new opportunities.

Further, Azerbaijan’s Small and Medium Business Development
Agency (SMBDA) Board Chairman Orkhan Mammadov spoke about the
support in the search for local partners and the implementation of
joint projects with SMBs. He also briefed about the areas and
measures that the agency can provide to foreign entrepreneurs
wishing to start a business in Azerbaijan.

“Swiss companies are interested in setting up a business in
Azerbaijan,” he said.

In this regard, he proposed creating joint enterprises that
bring new technologies and innovations to the business sector and
implement a training program jointly with the State Secretariat for
Economic Affairs of Switzerland in order to study the Swiss
experience.

In his turn, Azerbaijan’s Export and Investment Promotion Agency
(AZPROMO) Head Yusif Abdullayev noted the importance of relations
between the business communities of Azerbaijan and Switzerland and
informed about the measures taken to promote the Made in Azerbaijan
brand.

AZPROMO’s Deputy Executive Director Zohrab Gadirov spoke about
Azerbaijan’s business and investment opportunities.

Likewise, Alat Free Economic Zone Board Chairman Valeh Alasgarov
made a presentation on the investment potential of the economic
zone.

Additionally, Swiss-Azerbaijani Chamber of Commerce and Industry
President Claude Haegi, Swiss Joint Chamber of Commerce Managing
Director Dorit Sallis, Head of the Azerbaijan branch of JCC Leyla
Bagirzad, ISR Holding Chief Executive Director, SACCI Operations
Committee Co-Chairman Rauf Khalilov made reports on cooperation
between business people of the two countries.

The forum was held with the support of Azerbaijan’s Economy
Ministry in collaboration with SMBDA and AZPROMO.

In addition to officials from both countries, the event was
attended by entrepreneurs working in the industry, agriculture,
ICT, banking, health, construction, logistics, transport, finance,
food, and other sectors.

As part of the forum, entrepreneurs held bilateral meetings and
discussions on expanding partnerships and establishing new
ties.

Diplomatic relations between the two countries were established
on January 21, 1992.

Azerbaijan and Switzerland cooperate in various economic
sectors. There is mutually beneficial cooperation between Baku and
Bern in the non-oil sector. In addition, Baku will host a meeting
of the Commission on Trade and Economic relations between
Switzerland and Azerbaijan in 2022.

The trade turnover between the two nations amounted to $457.2m
in 2021, with exports accounting for $272.5m and imports for
$184.7m.

Azerbaijani top diplomat on vitality of peace deal with
Armenia, lauds Baku-Ankara-Ashgabat summit

The Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers are expected to
meet in the coming weeks, Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov has
said.

The minister remarked at a trilateral meeting with Turkish and
Turkmen counterparts Mevlut Cavusoglu and Rashid Meredov in
Turkmenistan’s Awaza on December 13.

The Azerbaijani minister noted that Baku intends to build
bilateral relations with Armenia based on mutual recognition and
respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity, and inviolability
of each other’s borders and normal neighborly relations.

“To this end, we have presented the recently updated proposals
on the text of the agreement on relations between the two countries
to the opposite side, and in the coming weeks, it’s planned to hold
another meeting between the foreign ministers of the two countries
for discussions,” he said.

Noting Azerbaijan’s position is consistent and principled, based
on international law and justice, Bayramov expressed hope for
Armenia to respond with the necessary political will and practical
actions to the steps taken by Azerbaijan to bring about peace.

“An important condition for achieving the logical result of the
normalization process is the immediate fulfillment of the
obligations undertaken by Armenia, and taking steps to establish
normal good neighborly relations,” Bayramov added.

Moreover, during the trilateral meeting, the foreign ministers
of the three countries reviewed documents on energy, trade,
customs, transport, education, and culture, as well as on the
trilateral format, which will be adopted at the first summit of the
Azerbaijani, Turkish and Turkmen leaders on December 14.

Bayramov noted that the summit will play a crucial role in the
development of a trilateral dialogue among the countries. He
praised the relations of the three states within international
organizations, including the Organization of Turkic States
(OTS).

Noting that 2022 marks the 30th anniversary of Azerbaijan’s
diplomatic relations with Türkiye and Turkmenistan, the minister
outlined the development of Azerbaijan-Türkiye-Turkmenistan
relations based on the common historical, cultural, linguistic, and
religious background of the three nations. He also emphasized the
leaders’ role in establishing mutual trust among the three
countries.

“Close engagements of the leaders determine the dynamics of
development of relations, as well as contribute to successful
interaction in the international arena. The first summit, which
will be held on December 14, is of historical significance. The
meeting will be an important stage in the development of the
trilateral Azerbaijan-Türkiye-Turkmenistan format, thus
complementing the bilateral relations existing between our
countries and further developing these ties based on common
interests and benefits. The joint statement of the first summit,
trilateral documents on energy, trade, economy, customs, transport,
science, education, culture are practical steps in this direction,”
Bayramov said on December 13 ahead of the summit.

According to him, this cooperation continues successfully as
part of international and regional institutions. The decisions
taken by the presidents during the XI Summit of the OTS held on
November 11, 2022, in Samarkand, have significantly bolstered joint
efforts.

Further, the official expressed confidence that the trilateral
cooperation of Azerbaijan, Türkiye, and Turkmenistan would
contribute to the full usage of the regional transport and transit
potential, as well as to the strengthening of the Trans-Caspian
International Transport Route (TITR). It was said that Azerbaijan’s
activities to establish a new transport infrastructure in the
liberated territories, including the opening of the Zangazur
corridor, are of particular importance.

The foreign minister also stated that the increasing relevance
of energy security against the backdrop of recent global events
testifies to the necessity of strengthening efforts in this
sector.

Speaking at the meeting, he talked about the reconstruction work
carried out by Azerbaijan to eliminate the aftermath of the
30-year-long occupation, as well as to ensure the safe return of
the former internally displaced persons (IDPs). He also pointed out
the landmine threat impeding the rebuilding efforts in the region,
including the peace process.

Baku hosts an annual meeting for military
attaches

On December 13, a meeting on the results of 2022 was held at the
Department for International Military Cooperation under the
Azerbaijani Defense Ministry with the participation of military
attachés of foreign states accredited to Baku, Azernews reports per
the ministry.

Maj-Gen Huseyn Mahmudov, Head of the International Military
Cooperation Department, briefed the military attaches on the
activities for 2023 as well as the work done in the outgoing year
in the military sector, including tasks carried out in the
territories liberated from occupation.

With the largest and most powerful army in the South Caucasus,
Azerbaijan is investing huge efforts to upgrade its military
potential.

The army-building process is of particular importance for
Azerbaijan, as the country is constantly facing military
provocations and no peace deal is signed with Armenia following the
latter’s defeat in the second Karabakh war in 2020. Nowadays, the
skills and combat readiness of the Azerbaijani army are growing
year by year and the army-building process is progressing as
well.

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