The strengthening of the Islamic State group in the Middle East is considered one of the main threats to the national security of regional countries. In a Skype interview with the “America Icmalı” program of Voice of America, Alirza Ardabili, a South Azerbaijani activist living in Sweden, discussed the repercussions of regional events in Iran and the impact of the current situation on Iranian Azerbaijan.
Alirza Ardabili stated that the developments in the Middle East have led to the emergence of a new security environment in the region. According to him, the current situation endangers the existence of small nations without their own states. “The forces that threaten the existence of small nations without sovereignty or a state have become active. This is a warning for us. Since we in South Azerbaijan do not have statehood, we rely on the military structure of another state for security. If that military structure were to collapse due to a crisis, we could be exposed to aggression by dark forces. The Turkmens in Iraq are an example of this,” said Alirza Ardabili.
Alirza Ardabili also commented on the continuation of South Azerbaijani activists’ peaceful struggle for linguistic and cultural rights against the backdrop of increasing violence in the region. “On the one hand, we are conducting our civil struggle against the military-political structure, and our nation is demanding its rights. On the other hand, that same structure is the only guarantor of our security. Therefore, if that connection is severed and those structures can no longer defend us, our security could be threatened in that vacuum,” he stated.
Alirza Ardabili emphasized the need for a policy on Iranian Azerbaijan in both the Republic of Azerbaijan and Turkey. “There should be a doctrine regarding South Azerbaijan that we can be familiar with, defend when necessary, and criticize its shortcomings when needed. This is a major deficiency,” he said.
Link to the original interview in Turkish on the Azerbaijani section of Voice of America:
Əlirza Ərdəbilli: Bölgədə vəziyyət İran Azərbaycanının təhlükəsizliyinə hədə yarada bilər