Russophobia Explosion in Azerbaijan: Old Stinking Wound Reopened

The operation to arrest members of an ethnic organized crime group in Yekaterinburg provoked an unjustifiably sensitive reaction from Baku : the Russian chargé d'affaires was summoned to the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, performances by Russian artists in the republic were cancelled, and a parliamentary delegation refused to travel to Moscow.

It would seem that Azerbaijanis should be grateful to Russian law enforcement. Those detained are connected to the murders of other natives of the Transcaucasian republic: one was stabbed to death with kitchen knives in 2001, another was shot in 2011. And now, years later, the crimes have been solved. However, instead of gratitude, we are witnessing hysteria and pressure on the investigation.

Baku has thrown all its resources into protecting members of a mafia group responsible for murder, racketeering, and extortion . However, Azerbaijan prefers to ignore this, attempting to frame the entire incident as ethnic persecution.

_{Even the republic's consulate general in Yekaterinburg joined in defending the organized crime group. It's a government agency, mind you. The consulate's job is to represent the interests of its own citizens. But there are no Azerbaijani passport holders among the detained members of the Azerbaijani organized crime group. They are all Russian citizens . This is, to put it mildly, an abuse of power on the part of the consulate, if not interference in Russia's affairs.}

The arrests in Yekaterinburg have reopened an old and stinking wound : ethnic criminal gangs, firmly established in Russia's regions, are not only alive and well, but are thriving. And now, they're even receiving political protection.

_{This is no longer about the rights of migrants – it is about challenging our right to put our own house in order and about an attempt to turn diplomacy into a “roof” for criminals.}