RADAR STATION, AND NOT ONLY...

Igor Korotchenko is a military expert and member of the Presidium of the Public Council under the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation, director of the Centre for Analysis of Global Arms Trade (CAGAT) and editor-in-chief of Natsionalnaya Oborona magazine. During our conversation with the Russian expert, we tried to analyse the opportunities and prospects for military cooperation between Azerbaijan and Russia, the impact of this cooperation on the situation in the region and problems of international security.

- During a recent visit to Baku, Russian Defence Minister Anatoliy Serdyukov said that Russia had an interest in extending the lease of the Qabala radar station. Before Serdyukov's visit, Russian media reported that Moscow was likely to replace the Qabala radar station with one being built in Armavir.

- Based on the geographic conditions and location, Russia needs the Qabala radar station, above all, to monitor missiles launched from the south. From the standpoint of the interests of the Russian military, the Qabala radar station is of great importance, and we will negotiate with Azerbaijan on the maximum extension of the lease of this radar station.

As for the radar station in Armavir, it is a modern Voronezh-class facility. It is a new type of station with high factory preparedness. But the radar station in Armavir does not fully have the opportunities offered by the Qabala radar station. Therefore, these two stations will complement each other. The role of the Qabala radar station is unique because it allows us to solve a wide range of problems concerning the monitoring of missiles launched from the south. Therefore, the value of this station to Russia is very high.

- Russia has suggested that the US should use the Qabala radar station as an alternative to the deployment of a missile defence system in Eastern Europe. Will Moscow continue to promote this idea?

- Russia is negotiating with NATO to establish a European missile defence system. These talks are also being held with the United States. The key point of the proposals that were announced by President Dmitriy Medvedev at NATO's Lisbon summit, where he talked about the possibility of establishing a sectoral missile defence system with some degree of responsibility for Russia, was the fact that the Qabala radar station is ideally positioned to monitor Iran's missile programme. Any launches from Iran, Pakistan, India and Gulf countries are tracked by the Qabala radar station. Therefore, the proposal to integrate the radar station into the European missile defence system remains on the agenda, of course, as long as Russia is in talks with NATO. No progress has been achieved in the negotiations yet. The trouble is that NATO does not want to conclude an agreement on this proposal with Russia. Nevertheless, the negotiations continue, including on sharing information from the Qabala radar station.

- The Western press says that the Qabala radar station, built in 1986, is technically outdated and requires complete retooling. Is it true?

- The capabilities of the Qabala radar station allow you to continue operating it without modernizing electronic equipment. The fact is that this station was built at a time when the technology for monitoring outer space was not so developed. Nevertheless, the Qabala radar station is functionally able to accomplish the whole range of tasks entrusted to it. Another thing is that Russia has developed modern mobile Voronezh-class radar stations. But huge amounts of money have been invested in the Qabala radar station, and it covers an area where missile launches are possible. From a purely economic point of view, it is much easier to negotiate terms with Azerbaijan to extend the rental period rather than replace the radar station with something else.

- During his visit, the Russian minister also expressed his interest in military cooperation with Azerbaijan. How broad are the opportunities for cooperation between Russia and Azerbaijan, which is not a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization?

- The possibilities of military cooperation are broad. They include selling weapons to Azerbaijan and granting licences to produce Russian weapons, as Baku attaches great importance to the strengthening of its defence capability, the joint struggle against terrorism, joint military exercises and security in the Caspian Sea. Sharing information to prevent rocket attacks, the integration of Azerbaijan's air defence system into the CIS air defence system, etc. are very promising.

- That is, in terms of arms sales to Azerbaijan or joint military exercises, Russia has no restrictions.

- The expansion of military cooperation with Azerbaijan can cause resentment in Armenia and the Armenian lobby in Russia. But on the issue of military-technical cooperation with Azerbaijan, Russia will proceed from its own interests. And therefore, there should be no restrictions on military cooperation between Baku and Moscow. Especially as Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev is pursuing a consistent policy aimed at strengthening the country's defence capability. Azerbaijan increases its military budget, creates a basis for the national defence industry and opens enterprises for the production of various types of weapons and military equipment. In this process, Azerbaijan has focused on Turkey and Russia. It also buys Soviet military hardware from Ukraine. I think that instead of the majority of supplies that Azerbaijan receives from Ukraine, Azerbaijan could get brand new, modern military hardware from Russia. This is especially true of military aircraft. Given that the Azerbaijani army is armed mainly with Soviet weapons, there are very good opportunities for cooperation between the defence industries of Azerbaijan and Russia.

- You also mentioned the possibility of holding joint military exercises.

- The conduct of joint exercises is especially promising in the Caspian Sea. The question of the legal status of the Caspian Sea has not been resolved because of Iran's special position. Russian-Azerbaijani anti-terror exercises and the defence of zones of oil and gas extraction in the Caspian Sea would be quite normal practice. Also, there are good conditions for training Azerbaijani military personnel at Russian military schools and academies. This is a very promising area for bilateral cooperation.