The Baku initiative?

In May, riots broke out in the French overseas territory of New Caledonia - a group of islands in the South Pacific. Protesters were calling for independence from the European nation that has ruled the archipelago for more than a century and a half. Amid the violence came an unusual claim - that Azerbaijan, a seemingly disconnected nation thousands of miles from both Paris and the Pacific Ocean - was stoking the violence online. BBC Trending asks if there is any truth to the claim. And if so, what might Azerbaijan be hoping to achieve?
Reporter / Producer: Sam Judah
Editor: Flora Carmichael

Credits:
The opening sequence contains excerpts from news reports by PBS in the US, and ABC News (Australia).
President Aliyev’s speech is an excerpt from a video produced by the Shusha Global Media Forum, Azerbaijan.