Oil as the only reason linking Duke of York with the Aliyevs

PanARMENIAN.Net - His lavish spending of taxpayers' money on private jets, not to mention his numerous uncomfortable friendships with questionable world leaders and a convicted paedophile, forced Prince Andrew to step down, the Independent reports.

“One of his visits to Azerbaijan involved the hiring of a private jet, at the cost of £60,000 (almost $100.000) to the taxpayer. Prince Andrew has visited President Aliyev eight times in the last five years. According to Buckingham Palace sources, all of his dealings in recent years with Azerbaijan and with other states questionable human rights records have been on behalf of the UK government,” Independent says.

Even after his resignation, the Duke continues to take an interest in the affairs of Azerbaijan, holding talks at Buckingham Palace with the UK's Ambassador to Azerbaijan.

No doubt, the friendship of the Duke of York with the Aliyev clan is basing on oil interest only. Great Britain has always “managed” to secure presence at oil-rich spots; just remember the division of the Ottoman Empire, with England getting nearly all oil-rich regions to establish its order, under the “fight for independence” cover in Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and other Near Eastern states. Meanwhile, France got all other oil-free parts.

However, the Duke of York is not the only one on friendly terms with Aliyev and the like. Along with increasing oil-addiction of the West, the oil monarchies of the West and other oil-rich countries started to dictate their own rules of the game.

For the U.S. and other countries, oil has become a source of wealth and occasion for unleashing a war “for vital interests”. Still, oil yields more concerns than wealth, both after the World War I and now.

The Syrian events come to prove that the oil is the source of all trouble and “revolutions” in the Near East. On November 5, opposition militants captured an oilfield in the province of Deir ez-Zor. The clash left about 40 governmental officers dead, wounded, and captive. Syria does not abound in oil; still, the resources will suffice for the militants to dictate their conditions to the West. Libya has tried to do this as well; as a result, it now faces an ongoing inter-tribal warfare and Benghazi’s claim for independence. The recently killed U.S. ambassador Christopher Stevens may also have had links with some Libyan oil politicians.

As to the Duke of York, it is worth reminding that Baku has recently been “discontented” with the British Petroleum activities, as well as with the operation of the so-called Azerbaijani lobby in Great Britain headed by Taleh Heydarov, son of Baku’s second key person Kamaladdin Heydarov. The world is increasingly claiming that the “caviar diplomacy” can no longer be pursued to keep up one of the toughest and most authoritative regimes.