PISM Bulletin: "Azerbaijan After a Decade of President Ilham Aliyev’s Rule", Konrad Zasztowt Ilham Aliyev, who has been ruling Azerbaijan since 2003, will seek to stay for a third term in a 9 October election. The election process will be a signal whether the authorities in Baku wish to cooperate further with the European Union. Azerbaijan has a chance to boost political ties with the European Union and go beyond energy cooperation. This choice, however, would require Azerbaijan to adopt EU standards for the rule of law and democracy. The alternative is to keep an equal distance from the EU and Russia and maintain the status quo in domestic policy, which may result in stagnation of its economy.
Posted on: Tue, 24 Sep 2013 09:16:16 +0000