Former FM: Yekaterinburg incident committed against Azerbaijanis is a crime

The incident committed against Azerbaijanis living in Russia is unequivocally a criminal act, Tofig Zulfugarov, Azerbaijan's former foreign minister and political scientist, told Report.

According to Tofig Zulfugarov, such incidents are not the first in Russia:

"It's not the first time in Russia that such pressures, murders, and similar incidents have occurred against ethnic minorities. CIS countries have repeatedly expressed their strongest objections to such unacceptable treatment. It seems that such actions are a trend in Russia's domestic policy."

Tofig Zulfugarov noted that without a court verdict, such treatment, torture, death, and other factors can only be called a crime:

"Azerbaijan immediately expressed its protest against this incident. I want to draw attention to two main issues. If those subjected to mass arrests and torture are Azerbaijani citizens, then Azerbaijan's capabilities to defend their rights are extensive, but at the same time, there are those who have accepted Russian citizenship, for whom Azerbaijan's ability to defend their rights after such treatment is somewhat limited."

The former foreign minister pointed out that there are clearly various power centers within the Russian leadership:

"They experience serious conflicts among themselves and also target specific countries. Accordingly, they implement negatively oriented policies. Despite all this, Azerbaijan sees the responsibility for such campaigns and policies conducted against itself and its citizens precisely in the leadership, and is completely right."

The political scientist recalled the alliance between Azerbaijan and Russia, saying that Russia's attitude is unacceptable:

"In general, more than 400 documents have been signed between the two states in various fields. The statement at the level of Azerbaijan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs shows that there is no response to Russia's unacceptable actions, or if there is, it is not satisfactory. The issue has also been properly communicated to the international community, and discussions are being held in various foreign media outlets."

Tofig Zulfugarov also expressed his thoughts about the future of Azerbaijanis living in Russia:

"Some of them are there as migrants, some have accepted Russian citizenship. In both cases, if Russia's attitude towards Azerbaijan and Azerbaijanis does not change, those people should probably reconsider whether they should continue living in Russia."

The former minister noted that as a neighboring and allied country, he expected a different attitude from Russia:

"The plane incident in Aktau, then the detention of an Azerbaijani MP at the airport, and this incident... We expected a different attitude from Russia towards these events. Because the alliance and neighborhood relations we listed demand so. But we see that in some cases, Russia has taken steps that do not even comply with international laws. Russia should reconsider and review the general neighborhood and alliance relations once again and take the necessary steps accordingly."