France accuses Azerbaijan of inciting the serious unrest in its overseas territory of New Caledonia. What is Azerbaijan really pursuing by accusing it of neo-colonialism?
Blue, red and green flags of Azerbaijan with a crescent and star in the French overseas territory of New Caledonia, even posters with the likeness of President Ilham Aliyev. What seems far-fetched, specifically 13,600 kilometers, has a power-political background.
The flags and posters were seen during protests by the indigenous population of New Caledonia, the Kanaks, against the government’s electoral law reform in Paris. Residents who have only been living in New Caledonia for ten years will soon be able to take part in provincial elections. Those in favor of independence from France fear that this will weaken them politically. The National Council of the Kanaks accuses the government in Paris of discriminating against them.
Four civilians and two French gendarmes were killed in the serious unrest, the likes of which have not been seen there since 1988. In addition to 2,700 police forces, the military is now deployed. Many vacationers had to stay on the island 1,500 kilometers east of Australia. French President Manuel Macron traveled there on Tuesday to negotiate a political solution. France maintains military bases on New Caledonia, and there are also significant nickel deposits.
Initiative group from Baku
Then Azerbaijan came into play. France’s Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin accused the South Caucasus republic of interfering in New Caledonia’s internal affairs. That is reality, the minister said on France 2. He regretted that “part of the Caledonian independence movement made a deal with Azerbaijan.”
In fact, Azerbaijan’s activities cannot be overlooked. The logo of the Groupe d’Initiative de Bakou was visible on protesters’ green and orange T-shirts above demands to withdraw the constitutional amendment. This initiative group of Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, was founded in July 2023.
In an interview with the Azerbaijani news agency Trend, its managing director Abbas Abbasov stated that one of its main goals was to support “the fight against colonialism and neo-colonialism”. The current focus is on France and areas such as French Guiana, French Polynesia, Guadeloupe and Corsica.
The initiative group issued statements in support of the Kanak National Council and organized conferences with representatives of supposedly 14 independence movements. Hundreds of social media accounts and pro-government media in Azerbaijan discuss in detail “France’s colonial policies” and the unrest in New Caledonia.
Non-Aligned Movement
For the government, the initiative group is part of a longer-term foreign policy. According to Abbasov, once a high-ranking employee of the state oil fund, the initiative group was founded at a meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement. Azerbaijan headed its secretariat from 2019 until the beginning of the year. The organization was formed in 1961 and brought together states that wanted to remain neutral in the East-West conflict, including many former colonies in Africa and Asia that had just gained their independence.
After the end of the Cold War, the movement lost its importance, but is again playing a role in positioning the so-called Global South against the West. In this organization, Azerbaijan also claims to be fighting Western imperialism.
No particular interest in Azerbaijan
But does the Azerbaijani leadership really care about the fate of the natives of New Caledonia and other regions of France? There is no political or ethnic connection.
“In general, people in Azerbaijan are not particularly interested in the fate of people in New Caledonia or other such areas. They would have difficulty finding them on a map. They just don’t care,” says blogger and activist Cavid Aga in Baku.
The media reported on this because the government ordered it. Many of them were financed directly or indirectly by the state-owned oil company SOCAR. “People don’t even dare to support the Muslim Uighurs in China.
Why Azerbaijan is attacking France
What is striking: The initiative group’s account on X (Twitter) was only created in October 2023. At that time, France announced that it would expand its long-standing support for Azerbaijan’s neighbor Armenia to include military aid. This includes the supply of weapons and the training of the Armenian armed forces. These were largely destroyed in the 2020 war against Azerbaijan.
Although Azerbaijan’s armed forces are modernized and equipped thanks to arms deliveries from Israel and Turkey, among others, the leadership in Baku accuses France of wanting to destabilize the situation in the South Caucasus and provoke a new war there.
Real support and domestic political Pressure
France is active in this conflict in the South Caucasus for several reasons. “There is real historical support for Armenia. This is all the more true as the country’s territorial integrity is threatened today. Azerbaijan still occupies 200 square kilometers of Armenian territory completely illegally and without justification,” explains journalist Régis Genté, who has been there since 2002 reported for French media from the South Caucasus.
In addition, there are domestic political reasons for the commitment, says Genté. “At a time when the political agenda is largely influenced by the far right, immigration and the Muslim world play an important role in foreign policy.” This led the government in Paris to take a more anti-Muslim stance on this issue.
Genté warns that it is a dangerous position to criticize the presidents of Azerbaijan and its ally Turkey while saying that one is on the side of the “Christian Armenian brothers.” “To defend the Armenians, one must talk to the countries, especially Turkey. This is precisely what is not done in this position for reasons of French domestic policy.”
Relativize your own authoritarian politics
This makes it easier for the leadership in Baku to portray France and Europe as enemies of Islam and to accuse them of human rights violations, also in order to relativize or even negate the authoritarian policies against their own population – since the autumn, numerous journalists and government critics have been arrested.
At a recent press conference with Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin, President Ilham Aliyev claimed that the media and the Internet are free in Azerbaijan. An Azerbaijani journalist who was traveling with him asked Scholz about a report from the Federal Ministry of the Interior on anti-Muslim sentiment in Germany. Scholz did not deny the problem at all and pointed out that it was the federal government that published this report.
Pretext for power politics
It seems questionable whether Azerbaijan is serious about the rights of religious and ethnic minorities. The leadership in Baku emphasizes tolerance, especially for the Jewish residents of Azerbaijan. But neither the ethnic minorities nor the religious communities have independent political influence. In addition, since the Armenians fled Nagorno-Karabakh in September 2023, there have been indications that their landmarks are being deliberately destroyed.
Observers see the support of the so-called Global South against the West as merely a pretext that Azerbaijan and Russia are using to pursue power politics by stoking existing conflicts. The pro-independence supporters in New Caledonia are hardly benefiting from Azerbaijan, says Genté, quoting an employee of the French Foreign Ministry as saying that the Azerbaijani dictatorship ultimately has little to offer.
Activist Cavid Aga in Baku also sees no real solidarity from Azerbaijan for the indigenous people of New Caledonia. Many people agree with him: it is all just a show.