RA MFA: Ilham Aliyev desperate

PanARMENIAN.Net - "Judging from the volume and tone of comments from Azerbaijan's President, there is a clear sense of desperation in Azerbaijan. After all, on all fronts, without any exception, Azerbaijan is either behind the international standard or going against prevailing international trends," Armenian Foreign Ministry's Spokesman Vladimir Karapetian said when commenting on Azeri President ilham Aliyev's statement that positions of Armenia and Azerbaijan at the international arena are incomparable.



"First, there is panic with regard to the international community's increasing understanding with regard to issues of self-determination," Mr Karapetian said. 



"Second, on economic and social issues, Azerbaijan's rankings are problematic. In an unfortunate coincidence for him, the President's comments about their economic strength and their statebuilding achievements came on the heels of three different reputable indices which demonstrate that there is reason for the panic, and that the President's comments are simply aimed at misleading his public," he said adding that The Heritage Foundation Wall Street Journal's Economic Freedom Index has Armenia at 28th, near the top, while Azerbaijan is 107 out of 162 countries rated. 



"In the Freedom House rankings of the democratic standings of states, Armenia is considered Partly Free, while Azerbaijan remains Not Free, as in years past. The Foreign Policy Index of Failed States, in a study of 177 countries, Armenia places 50 places above Azerbaijan. 



"There is hardly an international index, including those of Human rights and Freedom of Speech, where Azerbaijan's ranking even approaches Armenia's. Furthermore, according to World Bank data, despite Azerbaijan's enormous resources, they have barely caught up with Armenia's per capita income.  



"Finally, with all their rhetoric on military strength, experts predict that, at this rate of growth and military buildup, Azerbaijan will require 10-15 years to begin to challenge Armenia's armed forces. 



Given all this, these baseless Azerbaijani statements simply offer their own population false information thus diverting them from the real challenges that they face," Mr Karapetian said.