Azerbaijan in panic over Islamist current via Russian-Turkish energy alliance

YEREVAN, 3 DECEMBER, ARMENPRESS. Azerbaijani media views the Russian-Turkish energy alliance as negative. “The Azeri are concerned that the construction of a new gas pipeline moving through the Black Sea and reaching Turkey may hinder construction of the Trans-Anatolia gas pipeline stretching from the Azerbaijani Shah-Deniz gas field to Europe since Azerbaijan can’t compete with the amount of investments that Russia is planning on making in Turkey,” Azerologist Sargis Asatryan said during a December 3 press conference, according to “ArmenPress”.

The expert mentioned that in addition to the above mentioned, the Aliyev administration is also seriously concerned about the current of extreme Islamists that are becoming radicalized in the country. “The “Islamic State” terrorist group is successfully carrying out its lobbying in Azerbaijan, and rumor has it that there are more than 40,000 followers of ISIS and they are growing in number day after day,” Sargis Asatryan said, adding that 40 Azerbaijani families were trying to cross the border with Syria through Turkey a couple of months ago.