Baku Grants License for Kashen Mine to Bush's Chief of Staff, Civilnet Reports

A group of Azerbaijanis acting under the guise of environmentalists has been blockading the Stepanakert-Goris highway since December 12. This road is the only route connecting Armenia to Artsakh, and its closure has created humanitarian issues for the population of Artsakh. In recent days, the Azerbaijani 'environmentalists' attempted to enter the area of the Kashen mine in Artsakh, but this initiative was thwarted by local residents.

Beyond its political objectives in closing the Stepanakert-Goris highway, Azerbaijan's initiative by the 'Azerbaijani environmentalists' also has economic motivations, according to Civilnet. Under the guise of environmental monitoring, the Azerbaijanis aim to access the Kashen mine and take preliminary steps towards exploiting it for Azerbaijan's benefit.

The situation arose after, in July of this year, the Azerbaijani government signed a deal with the British company Anglo Asian Mining, granting it a concession for a number of mines, including the Kashen mine, for a sum of $3 billion. The Kashen mine is already operated by the Artsakh-registered company 'Bayz Metals.'

It’s worth noting that during a broadcast on Radio Aurora, Azerbaijani studies expert Tatevik Hayrapetyan revealed that Baku has either sold or leased the Kashen mine to the British. According to Anglo Asian Mining's website, on July 5 of this year, the Azerbaijani government approved a decision to transfer three new mines to this company under a concession agreement. The total area of these mines, according to Anglo Asian Mining, is 882 square kilometers, with one being the copper and molybdenum mine at Kashen.

Anglo Asian Mining refers to the Kashen mine by its Azerbaijani name, Demirli, and reports that as of January 2016, the mine held 275,000 tons of copper and 3,200 tons of molybdenum. These figures were derived from data provided by 'Bayz Metals,' the company operating the mine.

Anglo Asian Mining also notes on its website that Russian peacekeepers are currently present in the region to ensure peace, and the Azerbaijani government will make all reasonable efforts for the company to gain physical access to the Kashen mine area to conduct exploration for mineral resources. Moreover, Anglo Asian Mining is permitted to mine in the Zangelan region's gold mine, which the company refers to as the Vejnali mine.

The main shareholder of Anglo Asian Mining is Reza Vaziri, holding a 28% stake. According to a biography posted on the website, Vaziri has been engaged in business in Azerbaijan since its independence and was previously an official in Iran. He has served alongside notable figures such as James Baker III, Zbigniew Brzezinski, John Sununu, and Henry Kissinger. Vaziri, originally Iranian, is known for his closeness to the Aliyev family, as a portion of the operating metal mines in Azerbaijan has been allocated to him by father and son Aliyev.

The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) notes that Vaziri faced challenges in his early business years in Azerbaijan but rebounded with the rise of international gold prices. Moreover, the investigative group states that Vaziri sought to acquire the gold mine located in West Azerbaijan, Chovdari, but was unable to do so due to competition from a company named Londex Resources S.A., registered in Panama, which is linked to the children of Ilham Aliyev.

Previously, the Huffington Post reported on a bribery scheme involving the company Unaoil, where Vaziri was characterized as a person of significant opportunity who could meet with the Azerbaijani oil minister and prime minister at any time, compelling the oil minister to say what he wanted.

Another shareholder of Anglo Asian Mining was John Sununu, who served as Chief of Staff to former U.S. President George H.W. Bush and was previously the Governor of New Hampshire. Other members of the Sununu family are also involved in the management of Anglo Asian Mining. His stake in the mining company is 9.3%, with an additional 3.5% stake held by Limelight Industrial Developments, about which no information is available.

The deal between the Azerbaijani government and Anglo Asian Mining was facilitated by the global law firm Dentons, which has an office in Baku. In addition to Azerbaijani lawyers, Frenchman James Hogan also assisted in consultative capacity for a number of major transactions carried out by the Azerbaijani state sector, including those related to the Shah Deniz gas field and the privatization of shares in Azerbaijani state banks.

'Bayz Metals' is the number one taxpayer in Artsakh and is part of the 'Vallex' group, owned by businessman Valeri Medzlumyan. 'Bayz Metals' faced challenges after the 44-day war, as the mine's pumping station remained under the control of Azerbaijani forces. However, the issue was later resolved. The mining company also operated the gold mine at Dremboni, located in Martakert.

Geological exploration work at the Kashen mine began in 2007. 'Vallex' reports that investments made at the Kashen mine amount to approximately $130 million. 'Bayz Metals' paid 8.8 billion drams to the budget of Artsakh based on the annual results of 2021, whereas before the war, this figure was nearly 19 billion.