Dear friends from Azerbaijan, dear colleagues, on behalf of your many friends and colleagues from Uzbekistan, on behalf of the Uzbekistan National News Agency, allow me, first of all, congratulate you on the occasion of a glorious date - the 100th anniversary of the establishment of AZERTAC. Centennial celebration is a great and honorable holiday which is desired by many. The main thing is that you are at the forefront of the news agencies of the CIS countries. You are the major and most reliable source of official government news for all local and foreign media outlets. This is a very high trust the Azerbaijani government and people has placed in you.

AZERTAC was established on March 1, 1920, on the first day of spring - the time of revival of nature. An important event has been recently held in the capital of Azerbaijan, Baku. Uzbekistan became a member of the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States (Turkic Council).

The relations between our two agencies are also being renewed and strengthened. We know that the friendly relations between the Uzbek and Azerbaijani peoples have deep roots. In his remarks at the 7th Summit of the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking-States in Baku, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev said: “Participation in the Turkic Council is in harmony with the fundamental interests of our people. Uzbekistan's accession to the organization is a manifestation of natural historical processes. Today, not only our cultural and spiritual relations, but also our business relations have reached a new level. The number of visa-free tourist trips is increasing, the fraternal bonds between our peoples are strengthening.”

Dear colleagues, everyone can feel envious of you. I say it with all my heart. Because you maintain close relations with most foreign news agencies. You are a member of several international organizations. AZERTAC is one of the founders of the Association of the National News Agencies of the Commonwealth of Independent States (ANIA), the Union of the Turkish Speaking News Agencies (TKA) and the Black Sea Association of National News Agencies (BSANNA).

All of this, of course, requires a great deal of responsibility, along with providing an ample opportunity of being a part of the events taking place worldwide. AZERTAC has bureaus in several countries, including in USA, UK, France, Germany, Austria, Latvia, Hungary, Russia, Ukraine, Egypt, Turkey, Georgia, Iran, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, China, Japan, Spain, Romania, Italy and Sweden.

You have followed a glorious path, far outpacing the other news agencies. We have much to benefit from your long-term experience.

Dear Aslan Ahmad oglu, you have a destiny to be envied. You have been involved in journalism for more than 40 years and have been successfully leading the Azerbaijan State News Agency for almost 18 years. The books "Heydar Aliyev and AZERTAC" and "AZERTAC-90" of the agency are well known to us. We are looking forward to your next book “AZERTAC-100” dedicated to the 100th Anniversary of the Azerbaijan State News Agency.

Dear friends, dear colleagues, on behalf of the staff of the Uzbekistan National News Agency, we congratulate you and the entire staff of AZERTAC on the centennial anniversary of its founding and wish you the best of health, and success in your difficult and honorable mission.