Latest Articles about Azerbaijan
AZERBAIJANI AUTHORITIES DECIDE TO HOLD ELECTIONS IN KARABAKH
Although the Azerbaijani constitution sets the number of national parliamentary seats at 125, the actual number of deputies in the Azerbaijani parliament has always been 124. The empty seat belonged to district 122, located in Khankendi (Stepanakert), the capital of Karabakh, which is currently under... MORE
U.S. TROOPS IN AZERBAIJAN? MOSCOW SAYS NO, BUT BAKU SAYS MAYBE
Reports of potential U.S. military bases in Azerbaijan have intensified in the wake of another expected visit to Baku by the U.S. Secretary of Defense. Donald H. Rumsfeld is expected to arrive in Baku sometime this month, but this information has not yet been confirmed.... MORE
THE CONSPIRATOR AS BRAGGART
On August 4 and 5, Azerbaijani television channels screened a videotape of a meeting held on July 29 in Tbilisi between Ruslan Bashirli, leader of the Baku-based Yeni Fikir (New Thinking) youth association, and two Georgians who claimed to represent a youth group supporting regime... MORE
BAKU ON EDGE AMID REPORTS OF INCREASING TERRORIST MOVEMENTS IN AZERBAIJAN
Several incidents in the last few months suggest that Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, faces a significant terrorist threat. On July 21, two policemen were wounded during a daytime ambush. When the two approached a car near the central market and asked for documents, the... MORE
ARMS RACE IN THE SOUTH CAUCASUS: A TIME BOMB?
Locked in a decade-old conflict over Karabakh, Armenia and Azerbaijan have been increasing their military expenditures over the last few years. Lately this trend seems to have accelerated dramatically. The competition has launched an informal arms race in the South Caucasus that could easily lead... MORE
MADELEINE ALBRIGHT IN BAKU: ANOTHER PUSH FOR DEMOCRATIC ELECTIONS
Former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright arrived in Baku on July 11 to meet with Azerbaijani politicians, NGO activists, and mass media and to discuss the situation in the country ahead of the November 6 parliamentary elections. Albright is currently chair of the National... MORE
LARGE OPPOSITION RALLY SHATTERS NERVES OF AZERBAIJANI GOVERNMENT
Azerbaijani authorities have become seriously concerned about the success of the opposition rally held on Saturday, June 18, in Baku. More than 20,000 members of the election block "Azadliq" (Freedom), which unites the three largest opposition parties in the country -- Musavat, the Popular Front,... MORE
AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENT FINALLY INVITED TO WASHINGTON
On June 7, Azerbaijan Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov made a sensational announcement. According to him, President Ilham Aliev plans an official visit to the United States, and Azerbaijan's ambassador to Washington, Hafiz Pashayev, is in talks to determine the date of the visit. The news,... MORE
AZERBAIJANI OPPOSITION SCORES ITS FIRST VICTORY IN 19 MONTHS
On June 4, the Azerbaijani opposition achieved its greatest victory in the past 19 months. The ban on organizing and holding public rallies in the country was finally broken when Baku Mayor Hajibala Abutalibov agreed to authorize a request for street demonstration organized by a... MORE
TURKEY, GEORGIA, AZERBAIJAN LAUNCH NEW STRATEGIC RAILWAY PROJECT
While the May 25 opening of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline garnered considerable media interest, a second initiative has received less attention. On the sidelines of the BTC ceremony, the president of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliev, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, and Turkey's President Akhmed Nedget Sezer... MORE