This special edition of Strictly Conferential covers the Conference of Presidents Leadership Delegation to Azerbaijan. A companion edition will cover the 32nd Annual Leadership Mission to Israel.
At the invitation of President Ilham Aliyev, a 50-member Conference of Presidents delegation visited Azerbaijan for meetings with the President, Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov and other top governmental, business, and civic leaders, including representatives of Azerbaijan’s Jewish communities.
These sessions provided an important opportunity for dialogue with the top leadership of Azerbaijan, a country of significant strategic, political and economic importance as a major oil exporter, neighbor of Iran, and for its role in confronting extremist Islamic movements. Azerbaijan has been a voice of moderation in a turbulent region and these dialogues further enhanced the good relations between the US and Azerbaijan and Israel and Azerbaijan. The delegation learned a tremendous amount and gained a deeper understanding of the strategic value of the Caucasus region, its relationship with Israel and the United States, and its potential to serve as a bridge between moderate Muslim states and the Jewish community worldwide. Azerbaijan has a substantial and historic Jewish community with which the delegation also wanted to show its solidarity.
The delegation received a warm welcome, with US and Israeli flags flying outside their hotel. Security officials assured the group that they could walk safely in the street wearing yarmulkas. Shared Shabbat meals and services with the Azerbaijani Jewish community were moving experiences that underscored the ties of peoplehood and mutual responsibility between two Jewish communities.
The visit was organized in partnership with the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress and NCSJ - Advocates on Behalf of Jews in Russia, Ukraine, the Baltic States, and Eurasia. The Conference also expresses its appreciation for the extensive cooperation of the Jewish Joint Distribution Committee and the Jewish Agency for Israel.
President Ilham Aliyev
President Ilham Aliyev welcomed the delegation, saying “relations between Jewish people and Azerbaijani people have always been very cordial, even in Soviet times. When we became independent, it also became an official policy. Every year I go to [the Mountain Jew community of] Quba to meet with them and talk with them. If I see that they are happy, then I am happy.”
Commenting on relations with Israel, he said, “As you know, we have very good relations with Israel. We cooperate in various fields and would like to have more contacts. Our political contacts have strengthened in the last year with several delegations, and our level of cooperation is increasing. I am sure, in the future, relations in all fields will increase.”
Preident Aliyev also spoke about Azerbaijan's relations with the US: “We want peace, stability and security in the region. Our development depends upon it. We are partners and allies with the United States, taking part in operations all over the world, in Afghanistan and Iraq. This is a clear indication of our strategy.”
Following the hour-long exchange which covered many vital issues, Executive Vice Chairman Malcolm Hoenlein presented President Aliyev with a hamsa statuette and thanked him for his expressions of support for Muslim-Jewish co-existence and for strengthening relations with both the US and Israel. He assured President Aliyev that the delegation would report its positive findings in Washington upon its return.
The delegation was also received by First Lady Mehriban Aliyev, who is also a Member of Parliament and Chair of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation. She presented the work of the Foundation, named for Azerbaijan's first president, which focuses on reducing poverty domestically and the sharing of Azeri culture internationally. The Foundation has built 132 schools across Azerbaijan and provides medical assistance to orphans. (Photo: Conference Chairman Harold Tanner with President Ilham Aliyev)
Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov
Introduced by Conference Chairman Harold Tanner as “a friend of the Jewish community and a friend of the United States,” Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov thanked the Conference for its role in developing relations between Azerbaijan and the United States, a relationship that has become a strategic partnership. Azerbaijan’s relations with Israel, he said, were also strengthening, including in the economically important areas of power and transportation.
Minister Mammadyarov emphasized the centuries-old co-existence of Islam, Judaism and Christianity in Azerbaijan that continues to this day, and expressed his hope that Azerbaijan could be a model of co-existence for the region. He also discussed Azerbaijan’s conflict with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh. A round of negotiations with Armenia had taken place just days ago in Paris under the auspices of the OSCE, but no progress had been made. (Photo: EAJC President Alexander Machkevich, left, and Conference Executive Vice Chairman Malcolm Hoenlein present a hamsa statuette to Foreign Minister Mammadyarov.)
Government Ministers and Senior Officials
Among the Ministers who briefed the delegation were Hon. Hasan Bagirov, Minister of Environment, who said, “We have good relations with Israeli businessmen with whom we are working on water technology projects” to remedy the Soviet legacy of poor environmental standards in the petroleum industry. Hon. Ali Abassov, Minister of Information Technology and Communications, described the government’s plans to attract foreign investment in information technology.
Professor Samed Saidov, Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee of the Azerbaijani Parliament said, “When we see our Jewish friends here from the United States, we doubly value this visit because we are in favor of having strategically important relations with US and friendly relations with Israel.” He also noted the opening of the Israel Studies Center at the State University of Foreign Languages in Baku, where he serves as President. Mr. Samir Sharifov, Executive Director of the State Oil Fund – a pivotal position in Azerbaijan’s oil-dominated economy – spoke to the delegation about Azerbaijan’s role as a stable major oil exporter. Scheduled to open in the coming months, the Baku- Ceyhan pipeline will bring a million barrels of oil to the market each day.
US Ambassador Reno L. Harnish III
At the outset of the delegation's visit to Azerbaijan, US Ambasasador Reno L. Harnish briefed the delegation on US policy in the Caucasus. He called Azerbaijan “an important strategic partner for the United States” and noted several major areas of cooperation.
After 9/11, he said, Azerbaijan came forward to offer its assistance in the Global War on Terror, and has granted overflight and landing rights to the US to create a “modern Suez canal” for US forces in the area. The cooperation has a solid basis, since Azerbaijan regards militant Islam as a threat to itself. Security cooperation includes efforts to interdict Weapons of Mass Destruction-related materials in the Caspian Sea. Hopefully, its upcoming chairmanship of the Organization of the Islamic Conference can be used to promote a model of moderation. Azerbaijan has also contributed troops to missions in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Kosovo.
As a major oil producer, Azerbaijan has been “a spectacular success” in attracting and working with foreign energy companies. Its energy development contracts were models of protection for property rights and should be emulated.
Domestic political reform is another area of cooperation where the US has worked with the Azerbaijani government to assure greater openness and transparency in its election processes. As a member of the OSCE’s Minsk group, the US also works toward resolving the Nagorno- Karabakh conflict.
Conference leaders expressed their gratitude to Ambassador Harnish and members of his staff for their extraordinary efforts before and throughout the visit. American officials accompanied the group and Ambassador Harnish hosted a reception in honor of the delegation at his home.
Israel's Ambassador Arthur Lenk
Israel’s Ambassador to Azerbaijan, Amb. Arthur Lenk, provided an in-depth analysis of Israel’s strategic interests in its relationship with Azerbaijan, a young and moderate Muslim state, one of the few with friendly relations with Israel. He also noted that Azerbaijan's long border with Iran and the large ethnic Azeri population in Iran are complicating factors in Azerbaijan's relations with Israel.
Highlights of the Israeli-Azerbaijani bilateral agenda include the condition of the Azerbaijani Jewish community, which does not suffer from anti-Semtism and whose institutions operate freely. Bilateral trade is increasing and has enormous potential, especially in agriculture, environment, infrastructure, and airport security. MASHAV, Israel’s international development agency, has programs in Azerbaijan and also hosts Azerbaijani students at its courses in Israel. Israel is looking for even stronger political ties, including the establishment of Azerbaijani diplomatic representation in Israel.
Conference Chairman thanked Amb. Lenk and his staff on behalf of the delegation for their hard work to make the visit possible. In addition, Amb. Lenk hosted at his home a reception for the delegation and guests, including Azerbaijani Muslim students who had studied in Israel and spoke Hebrew fluently.
Prior to the departure on El Al's first flight ever from Israel to Azerbaijan, the delegation also received a comprehensive and detailed briefing from Amb. Mark Sofer, Deputy Director General for East Europe, Central Asia and Eurasia in Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Amb. Sofer described the regional political situation from Azerbaijan's perspective as well as bilateral issues between Israel and Azerbaijan. (Photo: Harold Tanner with Amb. Arthur Lenk and Malcolm Hoenlein)
Azerbaijani Jewish Leaders
Delegation visiting the new synagogue in Quba.
The delegation was welcomed by the heads of the three Jewish communities in Baku, Mr. Semen Ikhilov, Chairman of the Mountain Jews Communities, Mr. Gennady Zelmanovich, Chairman of the Jewish Ashkenazi Religious Community of Azerbaijan, and Mr. Mikhail Karelashvili, Chairman of the Georgian Jewish Community of Azerbaijan.
Mr. Ikhilov underscored the relative absence of anti-Semitism throughout the Mountain Jews’ 2700 year history in Azerbaijan. Mr. Zelmanovich noted that the Ashkenazi community, established 200 years ago, found a haven in Azerbaijan after fleeing pogroms in Slavic areas. He lauded the government’s strong response to the few anti-Semitic acts that did occur. When it was brought to the authorities’ attention that Mein Kampf had been translated into Azeri and published, the publisher was arrested 30 minutes later. Mr. Karelashvili discussed the close contacts between the Georgian Jewish community of Azerbaijan, which was 200 years old, with the historic community in Georgia. The delegation also visited the three communities’ synagogues in Baku, the JDC Chesed Gershon Welfare Center, the Jewish Agency for Israel Activity Center, the Ohr Avner (Chabad) Day School, and the Vaad- Ha’atzala Jewish School.
Shabbat was celebrated with the Baku Jewish community at the delegation's hotel with prayer and festive meals. Underscoring the community's ability to practice Judaism free from government or social pressure, the Shabbat events were held in the hotel's main ballroom and provided opportunities for members of the delegation and the Jewish community to get to know one another.
Quba, Home of the Mountain Jews
The delegation visited Quba, home to the historic community of Mountain Jews that dates to the 5th century BCE. In its 130 year-old synagogue, Chairman of the Krasnaya Sloboda Jewish community, Mr. Boris Simanduyev, thanked the delegation for its visit of solidarity. The community is small, he said, but strong and expects to continue to flourish. He noted the annual visit to Quba by President Aliyev, who said on his last visit: “Jews are my good friends, but Mountain Jews are my brothers.” The governor of Quba, Mr. Azuman Aliyev, spoke about the excellent relations between the ethnic Azeri and Jewish communities: “For centuries, Azeris and Jews have shared our joy and our grief and we shall do so for centuries to come.” Azerbaijan’s only Jewish parliamentarian, Mr. Edgar Abramov, also attended the lunch to welcome the delegation
Quba's new synagogue and yeshiva were also visited by the delegation. At the public school, where all the students learn Hebrew, the delegation was greeted by students singing Hebrew songs. (Photo: Old Synagogue of Quba)
Dialogue with Muslim and Christian Leaders
Leading Muslim and Eastern Orthodox Christian leaders met with the delegation to discuss inter-religious relations in Azerbaijan. Sheikh ul-islam Allahshukur Pasha-zadeh, Chairman of Caucasus Muslims Board, said: “The leaders of the religious communities in Azerbaijan – Muslim, Jewish, Christian - work together to ensure harmony. Sometimes we have pressure on us. Sometimes our neighbors have an interest in creating conflict among us. But our spirit, our land, the traditions we have, the cooperation among religious leaders, and our respect for each other prevent them from achieving their goal.” (Photo: Malcolm Hoenlein with Sheikh Pasha-zadeh.)
Expert Commentary
Effects on the local Jewish communities of the changing regional political dynamics were discussed from American, Israeli, and Azerbaijani perspectives by Dr. Brenda Shaffer of Haifa University and Harvard University’s Caspian Studies Project, Mr. Mark Levin, Executive Director of NCSJ - Advocates on Behalf of Jews in Russia, Ukraine, the Baltic States, and Eurasia, Mr. Avinoam Idan of the Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace at Hebrew University, and Mr. Elin Suleymanov. former foreign policy advisor to President Aliyev and Consul General- designee of the Azerbaijani Consulate in Los Angeles.
Dr. Shaffer also gave extensive background briefings regarding Azerbaijan's geopolitical situation. Mr. Idan, former director of NATIV in Azerbaijan during the aliyah of Azerbaijani Jews to Israel in the 1990s, provided ongoing commentary on the Jewish communities.
Mr. Temuri Yakobashvili, Executive Vice-President of the Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies discussed the Caucasus region in the context of global security. He noted that the only unconditional allies the US has in region are Israel and the Caucasus states. Russia and Turkey could both turn their backs on the West, which would cut the West off from the entire Caspian region. The Caspian is increasingly important to the West as an energy supplier, since more countries are inclined to use the oil weapon against the West, including major suppliers like Iran, Venezuela, and Russia.
Euro-Asian Jewish Congress
Mr. Alexander Machkevich, President of the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress and co-Chairman of the delegation, spoke at a special cultural evening, which featured nationally renowned Azeri musicians and local Jewish dancers. Mr. Machkevich said, “Today with the tensions we see in the world between Muslims, Christians and Jews, it is very important that the leaders of American Jewry are visiting this wonderful country, Azerbaijan. And it is important for both sides. For Americans, it is important to see and feel how Jews are comfortable in this Muslim country. For Azerbaijan, it is important to show how religious communities can live together. In this country, we can be proud to be Jews.” He thanked Harold Tanner and Malcolm Hoenlein for the "wonderful partnership" between the WAJC and the Conference of Presidents and for "helping Jews in America and around the world."
The delegation had an extensive exchange regarding the situation of Euro-Asian Jewish communities with Russian members of the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress, Mr. Michael Chlenov, Secretary-General, and Mr. Roman Spektor, Head of the Media Department, as well as Mr. Josef Zisels of Ukraine, Chairman and General Counsel, Mr. Sumati Leuvsandendev of Mongolia, Executive Board Member, and Mr. Jeremy Jones, President of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry.
Messrs. Chlenov, Spektor, and Zisels discussed the current situations of the Russian and Ukrainian Jewish communities in the context of rising anti-Semitism in the Former Soviet Union. Mr. Jones commented on terrorism in Southeast Asia and the threat to the Australian Jewish community. Mr. Leuvsandendev described the Mongolian Jewish community that he heads and the special challenges facing it, as a small community and one so distant from others.
Photo: President Aliyev with the Delegation
President Ilham Aliyev, center, between EAJC President Alexander Machkevich and Conference Chairman Harold Tanner, at the Presidential Palace.
