"Russian House" in Baku is closing

Azerbaijani authorities have notified about the closure of the "Russian House" - a project of Rossotrudnichestvo, which is headed by Evgeny Primakov, who is under EU sanctions.

Rossotrudnichestvo is one of Russia's "soft power" instruments abroad. Baku believes that the organization is engaged in espionage activities, and therefore, as the Azerbaijani press writes, they "no longer want to tolerate external interference." Earlier, Azerbaijan closed the office of the American Agency for International Development USAID, which is also considered a "soft power" tool.

Azerbaijan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs officially notified the US about terminating USAID activities on its territory. The reason is that on June 1, 2024, Azerbaijan did not extend the framework agreement signed with the US in 2000. This document formed the basis for USAID's work in the republic, but it expired in February 2023.

A rather mysterious structure

Noma Zarubina, an independent expert on politics and international security living in New York, called Rossotrudnichestvo a kind of diplomatic satire. As she believes, "it's dangerous to both overestimate and underestimate its influence. On one hand, its activities are largely tied to leadership ambitions, especially under Primakov, who clearly tried to give the organization some mystery. However, in practice, the agency remains a structure that few people know about, despite having a decent budget."

At the same time, in certain regions, such as Latin America, the Middle East, or Southeast Asia, Rossotrudnichestvo promotes clichés about "Russia's greatness," taking advantage of the local population's poor education, writes the "Caspian" newspaper.

Law violation

Earlier, Azerbaijan's State Advertising Agency (ADRA) found violations of the laws "On Advertising" and "On the State Language of the Republic of Azerbaijan" on the "Russian House" signboard. According to legislation, advertising on advertising structures can contain inscriptions in a foreign language alongside Azerbaijani at the advertiser's request. However, the foreign language text must be placed after the state language text and not exceed its area.

On the signboard above the entrance to the "Russian House," the name of this structure in Azerbaijani was placed after Russian, which violates the law.

We don't need help from outside

"Azerbaijan has become a donor itself and doesn't need help from outside, especially if it's provided through non-transparent schemes and organizations whose structure is clearly intelligence-oriented," writes the Report news agency, citing its sources.

The Russian side has already received official notification about terminating Rossotrudnichestvo's activities since the "Russian House" lacks registration.

"The Russian Information and Cultural Center 'Russian House,' which is Rossotrudnichestvo's representative office in Azerbaijan, is not registered as a legal entity," said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Aykhan Hajizade.

Russia is ready to address the shortcomings

Rossotrudnichestvo itself has been on the EU sanctions list since July 2022, but "Russian houses" continue to operate in some European countries.

As stated by Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova, Russia is ready to take necessary actions to register the "Russian House" in Baku.

"The Russian Federation expects that the situation with the Russian Cultural Center in Baku will be resolved positively," she said.