The extensive interview of the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev to the Director General of the Russian International Information Agency “Russia Today” Dmitry Kiselev is remarkable in many respects and demonstrates the attitude of the Azerbaijani state to regional and global world politics. This policy is based on a deep analysis of the president and his team, an assessment of the processes. In the interview, President Ilham Aliyev commented on many issues and approached the events that worry the world from his point of view. The head of state’s approach to each issue clearly demonstrates his outstanding personal qualities, global leadership qualities, the logical consistency of his views, and a broad view of events. Answering a question about relations between Russia and Azerbaijan in the interview, the president noted that today our countries are reliable partners. Recalling that on February 22, 2022, the two countries signed a Declaration on Allied Interaction, the head of state noted that a significant change in the situation in the region and in the world as a whole did not affect the nature and form of cooperation between Russia and Azerbaijan.
"I believe that the signing of such a declaration is a demonstration of the long path that we have traversed together in more than 30 years, working hard and building up the capacity for cooperation in trade, economic and political spheres and testing each other in various difficult situations. Therefore, I believe that the very fact of signing such a declaration is a major political step both on the part of Russia and on the part of Azerbaijan. It is the highest form of interaction and cooperation, especially if we take into account the fact that we are neighboring countries, neighbors both in the Caucasus and in the Caspian region. In many ways, the foreign policy priorities of our countries coincide, so, of course, the signing of such a document is a historic event, I would say," said President Ilham Aliyev.
The fact that President Ilham Aliyev attaches such importance to relations with Russia shows that Baku understands the responsibility for each of its steps and is true to its signature. It does not change its mind every day, like individual countries. And how important and significant relations with Russia are for our country is becoming increasingly clear against the backdrop of what is happening in the region and the world. Therefore, Azerbaijan, from the point of view of mutual interests and ties, is sensitive to relations with Russia, which has a voice in the world and is its closest neighbor. In the interview, the head of state emphasized the high level of cooperation between Azerbaijan and Russia, as well as Turkey. He noted that Azerbaijan has good relations with its neighbors, based on mutual respect with the centers of power and is perceived as an independent foreign policy actor. Speaking about the fact that Azerbaijan is the only country that is an ally of both Russia and NATO member Turkey, the president noted that "there is no other such country in the world." One of the highlights of the interview was the Azerbaijani leader's statements about the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. Touching upon the possible consequences of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, President Aliyev in this context openly expressed his opinion about the danger of a conflict between NATO and Russia.
"I would like to express hope that things will not reach the point of a clear confrontation between NATO and Russia. First of all, because everyone understands the catastrophic consequences of this for the whole world, for all countries and, of course, for countries bordering the region. Secondly, I do hope that the change of administration in the United States will also usher changes in foreign policy objectives. The experience of Mr. Trump's first presidential term, as well as the statements made by him and members of his team during and after the election campaign allow us some hope. Therefore, imagining a scenario in which NATO and Russia will engage in a hot war would be tantamount to imagining a global apocalypse. It is clear that there will be no winners in this war. And no countries, even those located far away from the NATO region or Russian territory will feel safe. I do believe that there is enough political wisdom in Washington, Moscow, and other capitals to prevent such a nightmare scenario from materializing," Azerbaijani President noted.
With this, the President reminded about the threat that the world may face from those who prioritize personal and national interests, take irresponsible steps and statements.
The head of state added that Azerbaijan can also contribute to the work to relieve tensions. These opinions are also an expression of the Azerbaijani leader's concern about the threat that the world is facing. President Ilham Aliyev analyzes the geopolitical processes taking place in the region and the world more deeply, sees what steps need to be taken. And this is another proof of how far-sighted and wise a leader he is. The next indicator of the President's consistent, principled views are the specific opinions he expressed regarding the Azerbaijani-Armenian relations. Speaking about the peace treaty between Azerbaijan and Armenia, the head of state noted that 15 of the 17 articles of the document have already been agreed upon, two remain. One of them concerns refraining from international lawsuits against each other. And the other article concerns the non-deployment of representatives of other countries on our border.
The head of state also stressed the importance of making relevant amendments to the Constitution of Armenia for the normalization process, which primarily contains territorial claims against our country, as well as the manifestation of Yerevan's official political will to liquidate the OSCE Minsk Group created in connection with the Karabakh issue. It is worth noting that official Baku has long voiced these principles. Repeating this once again, the head of state brings to Yerevan's attention the steps that Armenia must take to achieve a peace agreement. He wants specifics on these issues to achieve permanent peace, prevent the emergence of territorial claims in the future, and prevent official Yerevan's attempts to postpone some issues for the future. On the other hand, the head of state stressed that France's attempts to create regional tensions have significantly weakened the political power and weight of Emmanuel Macron's France. He made it clear that France, which has created a practical threat to Azerbaijan by selling weapons to Armenia, is still unable to change the regional balance of power, that Armenia and its patrons will not withstand an arms race with Azerbaijan: "Armenia will not stand the arms race with us, despite the fact that they get most of the arms from the West for free or on loan, which, of course, will be written off. But even in this case they will not withstand an arms race with us."
Drawing attention to the fact that France and the United States are creating tension in the region, the head of state also touched upon the events in Georgia. He noted that Western circles have artificially created tension in the neighboring country. President Ilham Aliyev's attitude to the latest events in Georgia in the interview shows how closely he follows the processes and deeply analyzes them. The head of state noted that Georgia is a very important partner and close friend for Azerbaijan, therefore, destabilization or the threat of destabilization of Georgia, as harmful as it is for Georgia, is also harmful for Azerbaijan. "Therefore, for our part, we strive for, and are doing everything to ensure, that the situation in Georgia aligns with the political direction, is stable, and that Georgia develops successfully," the president noted.
In the interview, the head of state also touched upon other important issues, spoke in detail about the unfair, biased position of France and the United States towards Azerbaijan, the pressure and threats against our country during COP29, France's colonial policy in New Caledonia and other overseas possessions, relations between Armenia and the CSTO, the attitude towards the Russian language in Azerbaijan and other issues, and expressed opinions based on analysis. The opinions he expressed give grounds to say that President Ilham Aliyev outlined a specific roadmap for regional and global policy during his interview. Commenting on the impending danger to the world, the tension that is gradually approaching the "red line" between Russia and NATO, he warned of the threats this could create, recalled the importance of dialogue and pointed out a way out of the situation. In general, the interview of the head of the Azerbaijani state shows that the country's leader has detailed information about regional and global processes, accurately calculates risks and conducts in-depth analysis. All leaders talk about the problems the world is currently facing. Ilham Aliyev's distinction is that he can present an analysis of the roots and essence of problems in simple language, and he also knows and speaks about the ways to solve them. With these steps, the President of Azerbaijan offers an approach that can become an example for world leaders. All this suggests that there is currently a huge need for leaders like Ilham Aliyev in the world in a global sense.
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