The unannounced visit to Baku of the outgoing commander of the Russian peacekeepers in Karabakh, Rustam Muradov, accompanied by his replacement, Mikhail Kosobokov, for a meeting with Azerbaijani Defence Minister Zakir Hasanov triggered mixed media reactions.

Reporting about the meeting, Haqqin.az said that "the meeting discussed the situation on the territory of Azerbaijan, where the Russian peacekeepers are temporarily deployed."

The independent Turan news agency's report "Commander of the peacekeepers received cold welcome in Baku" maintains that "if we compare reports on the meetings of Muradov and Kosobokov in Yerevan and Baku, we can clearly see the dry tone of the Azerbaijani side. Moreover, the Azerbaijani Defence Ministry did not consider it necessary to publish a photo of [Azerbaijani Defence Minister Zakir] Hasanov's meeting with the Russian generals. All this can be regarded as official Baku's dissatisfaction with the actions of the peacekeepers."

The Minval news and analysis website claimed that "Azerbaijan has not yet reported on Kosobokov's visit to Baku and on his meetings with the country's military leadership. There are probably reasons for this: Kosobokov once commanded a Russian military base in [Georgia's] occupied Abkhazia. Moreover, it is perplexing that Kosobokov, who will command the Russian contingent on the territory of Azerbaijan, begins his visit from Yerevan."

The report adds that it is also important that "in Russia, more and more people began to talk about the extension of the stay of Russian peacekeepers on the territory of Azerbaijan as a fait accompli. They understand perfectly the sensitivity of the issue for the Azerbaijani public, but as if in spite of it, they continue to voice this thesis through the lips of their heralds."

Moscow, which is playing its own game, would like to stay in the region as long as possible. And it is not at all about staying here to reconcile the parties. No, where there is Russia, peace never comes, the report says, noting that the further stay of the Russian peacekeeping contingent in the region after 2025 is not in the interests of Baku that is interested in the reintegration of the Armenian population of the Karabakh region into the political and public environment of Azerbaijan.

"As the experience of the last months of the 'positive work' of the Russian peacekeepers shows, the Kremlin, unfortunately, may try to interfere in these plans of Baku," the report concludes.