(MENAFN- AzerNews)
Elnur Enveroglu read more The Summit-level meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement Contact
Group in response to Covid-19 in Baku on March 2 under Azerbaijan's
chairmanship will incontrovertibly go down in the history of the
world's second-largest global institution with projects implemented
to relieve pains of nations under the strain of Covid-19 pandemic
and initiatives made by the rotating chairman to elevate NAM to the
level deserved and status anticipated by member nations.
The summit with delegations from over 70 nations also heard
Azerbaijan's clear-cut crystal position on and denunciation of
France's neo-colonial policies in the XXI century.
The Azerbaijani leader in his epigrammatic and pungent comments
on France's dubious roles at home and abroad as well the
mistreatment of its own colonies, including unwarranted and
unwished intrusion in the processes unfolding in the South Caucasus
between Azerbaijan and Armenia, urged neo-colonial Paris to learn a
proper lesson from the inglorious past.
'Unfortunately, nowadays, we observe a rising tendency towards
neo-colonialism. NAM, which came into existence due to the
historical decolonization process, should unify its efforts toward
completely eliminating this shameful page of mankind. NAM always
strongly supported the unquestionable sovereignty of the Union of
Comoros over the island of Mayotte, which continues to be under the
colonial rule of France. As reflected in fundamental NAM documents,
we call on the French Government to respect the rights of the New
Caledonian people and other peoples in French overseas communities
and territories. The French-administered territories outside Europe
are nasty remains of the French colonial empire. We also call on
France to apologize and admit its responsibility for its colonial
past and bloody colonial crimes and acts of genocide against NAM
member countries in Africa, South-East Asia, and other places,'
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said on March 2.
France is one of the five permanent UNSC members and though in
this capacity its mandate calls for fair and just protection of
other non-UNSC members' rights, Paris has long forgotten the
significance of the mandate and is dancing to Armenia's pipe. Since
Azerbaijan's independence, the relations between Baku and Paris
have experienced ups and downs but have never reached the current
level to trigger the sharpest criticism but fact-based.
France was one of the states that recognized Azerbaijan's
independence in January 1992 and even opened its embassy in Baku
second after Turkiye.
Now the major question is what is behind France's
anti-Azerbaijani policies and prejudice? Why has official Paris
always defended the aggressor Armenia irrespective of the
occupation of Azerbaijani lands by Armenia?
Indeed, the fact that France never demonstrated this urgency
when Azerbaijan's territorial integrity was violated for 30 years
raises questions about the true nature of France's approach to the
Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict and the implications of Paris' policies
for the future of the relations between the two South Caucasus
countries. These are well-grounded questions as France – along with
Russia and the United States – was one of the three co-chairs of
the OSCE Minsk Group, and thus, was legally obliged to show
neutrality and coordinate peace negotiations between Baku and
Yerevan.
Apparently, unlike previous French leaders, the sweat shed by
current President Emmanuel Macron for Armenia is not in vain.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's meme with a telephone
receiver that went viral waiting for France's Macron is an
illustrative example of intimacy and chemistry between the two that
goes against other interests since they are deprived of respect for
respect third-party interests demand.
For instance, the majority think that Macron's statements were
more linked with the existence of a large Armenian community in
France, whose votes were also necessary for his next shot in his
latest presidential elections back in 2022, and as such, should not
be taken seriously. This interpretation misses the fact that his
hasty support to Armenia in the border dispute was by no means an
isolated case. This has been, in fact, an integral part of Macron's
policies since the beginning of his presidency and, more
fundamentally, is just another episode in France's historically
biased position on the Armenian question.
Of course, this should not be surprising if the matter is with
France. The extensive experience in prejudice, defending the wrong
against the right, and most importantly, colonialism relies on its
deep historical background. Hence, the Azerbaijani president's
address at the NAM Contact Group meeting saying -“The
French-administered territories outside Europe are nasty remains of
the French colonial empire” - also made France's past exposed.
If not for its position in the Minsk Group or different
platforms, this bias would not require any criticism as such
support could be seen as inherent to any alliance between states.
With this, France has not only turned Azerbaijan, which has a
leading position in the South Caucasus, the Union of Comoros over
the island of Mayotte which is still under its colonial rule, and
New Caledonia against itself but unfortunately, has negatively
affected Armenia's relations with its Turkic neighbors (Azerbaijan
and Turkey) with its immense support.
By supporting the wrongdoings of Armenians, refusing to pressure
Armenia to stop its illegal occupation of Azerbaijani territories,
and by attempting to downplay – if not justify – this illegality,
France has emboldened Armenia's nationalist groups and acted as a
catalyzer by encouraging them to a more radical position. As a
historic example, France's policies in the 1980s vis-à-vis members
of the Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia (ASALA),
an Armenian terrorist organization, were long criticized for being
lax and were even seen to appease the group, despite them having
committed terrorist attacks against Turkish diplomats in France and
around the world.
In a nutshell, the current French state policy is not balanced
but openly pro-Armenian, and with Macron in power, Paris is
uninsured against fresh debacles both domestically and externally
and with slaps on his face from French citizens in protest at his
unpopular policies, and Azerbaijan's president's Ottoman style slap
will make him lose his bearings forever as a young and promising
politician he was once tipped.
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Elnur Enveroglu is AzerNews' staff journalist, follow him on
@elnurmammadli1
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