Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 25
Trend:
Despite the signs of US President-elect Donald Trump's willingness to maintain contacts with Azerbaijan, in fact anything will unlikely to change in Washington's policy on South Caucasus, Arzu Naghiyev, deputy director general of Trend news agency, political analyst, told Vestnik Kavkaza information and analysis agency.
"Presidential candidate Trump and President Trump are different,” he added. “I think that after Trump's inauguration, the US will continue to pursue the same policy in the South Caucasus.”
“Of course, the business ties between Trump's structures and Azerbaijan is a positive thing, but it does not mean that the US would be able to instantly change its views under the influence of one man," Naghiyev said.
He added that at the same time, there are still hopes for positive developments in the US policy on the South Caucasus.
"There will be new US co-chairman of the OSCE Minsk Group,” Naghiyev said. “And the OSCE Minsk Group’s French co-chairman also changed. It is important because a lot depends on whether a particular authorized diplomat knows what is happening in the region. Nevertheless, one must not forget that to a greater extent it will depend on a new Secretary of State and his team."
The expert recalled that during the pre-election campaign, Trump gave priority to security and the fight against international terrorism.
"Of course, the unresolved Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is one of the threats in the South Caucasus,” Naghiyev said. “If the conflict is resolved, the US side and other nations will be able to participate in all geopolitical and macroeconomic projects in the Caucasus without any risks. Therefore, I think that Trump will take advantage of it."