By Kamal Ali

Aleksandr Skakov, head of a working group at the Center for Central Asian and Caucasus Studies at the Russian Academy of Sciences, has said something genius in an interview with an Azerbaijani news website. He said: “The CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) is dead. Let Ukraine bury it.”

Here is the full quote by Skakov: “The CIS will be replaced by new organizations, such as the Customs Union and the Eurasian Union. Moscow will bet on them. Azerbaijan has no reason to worry about. The CIS is already dead. You do not have to attend the funeral. Let Ukraine bury it if it wants to.”

These thoughts are valuable because they are not by an Azerbaijani, Armenian or, God forbid, by an American or Georgian expert. They are by a Russian expert. In other words, the objectivity of the author does not cause any doubt. If a Moscow-based expert says the CIS is dead, what can you expect other political analysts to say?

I find some other issues intriguing too. Who is to blame for the quick demise of the CIS? The answer could be this: it is he who now establishes the Customs Union and the Eurasian Union.

Here is another question: What did prevent the gravedigger of the CIS from keeping and strengthening the CIS and transforming it into what they had to establish today in Astana?

A third question may sound a bit hypothetical: if the builder of the CIS later destroyed it with its actions, can we not expect the same constructive/destructive behavior from her in relation to the Customs Union and the Eurasia Union?

We all witnessed the birth, the life and death of the CIS. It was destroyed by enmity and wars between its member states. Russia, the founder and main member of the CIS, was either directly involved in the hostilities or supported one of the sides to the conflicts. 

As a result, Georgia and Ukraine pulled out of the organization. We know how and why Kiev and Tbilisi left the CIS and who they protested against by doing so.

As we are witnessing the birth of the Eurasian Union, a conflict is already there between Kazakhstan and Armenia, a potential member of the organization which is a Russian military outpost. 

The outpost destroyed the CIS by creating the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh with Azerbaijan. The same outpost will also destroy the new organization.

The history of birth and death of Moscow-led blocs repeats itself.

Bakudaily.az