NEVER FORGET! John Kerry sucking up to Azerbaijan's President. This has EVERYTHING to do with Russia. Once again trying to cutoff Russia from selling natural gas into Europe.
"On March 30th, 2016, Secretary John Kerry met with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to discuss “a range of bilateral and regional issues.” Kerry commended Aliyev’s efforts to become a regional trade hub by helping to establish the Southern Gas Corridor. The Southern Gas Corridor is made up of three branches which run from Azerbaijan, through Georgia, and into Turkey (an ally of Azerbaijan)– allowing the European market to completely bypass Russia (and Armenia). With Turkey set to enter the EU, this essentially creates a streamline from the Caspian Sea into Europe. Prior to the creation of the pipeline, Russia was one of Europe’s largest natural gas suppliers. Kerry ended the meeting by affirming U.S. support for Azerbaijan’s “territorial integrity” in the region and commending the Azeri president for his support towards NATO efforts in the past.
Gas isn’t the region’s only valuable resource. The newly leaked Panama Papers reveal corruption surrounding the Chovdar gold mine in Azerbaijan. This can help provide a glimpse into the current disputes between Armenia and Azerbaijan in the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Internationally recognized as Azerbaijani territory, the Nagorno-Karabakh territory has a growing GDP thanks to precious metals, oil, transportation, construction, and of course: foreign investments and international trade. Although Nagorno-Karabakh is technically part of Azerbaijan, most of the population is Armenian. So when Azerbaijan’s goal is to privatize Nagorno-Karabakh’s resources, create tax breaks for foreign investors, and thus become a player in the international market, of course the Armenian population is going to retaliate. And they have been: prior to the ceasefire, hundreds of Armenians have reportedly been joining the conflict. On the Azerbaijan side, hundreds of ISIS fighters have reportedly returned to Nagorno-Karabakh to fight– conveniently traveling from Syria through Turkey, of course– according to Russian sources."
https://geopoliticsalert.com/john-kerry-met-with-azerbaijans-president-days-before-dispute-in-nagorno-karabakh-region