Baku, January 12, AZERTAC

The key message of the head of state's interview with local TV channels on January 10 is that Azerbaijan was and still remains on the wave of contemporary demands, relying only on itself. We have demonstrated our strength and capabilities both during the liberation of our territories from Armenian occupation and in the post-conflict period, in the process of reconstruction of destroyed cities and districts, and we are creating prerequisites for the future. These include the “green” energy and the use of alternative energy in modern conditions, political expert Tofig Abbasov has told AZERTAC while speaking about President Ilham Aliyev's extensive interview of January 10.

“It has already become a good tradition when the President gives an interview to representatives of local TV channels at the beginning of the year, covers all the main directions of our country's life, and talks about successes and problems. This year was no exception. In early January, the President honored the representatives of our TV channels and reminded again that we had just completed a very successful, significant and milestone year, which will remain in the history of our republic and our people as a victorious year. We have fully secured our territorial integrity, won a confident victory and left not a single chance not just to Armenia, but also to its numerous associates, inspirers and supporters who were and still are trying to smear Azerbaijan, make us look bad and portray us as alleged invaders even though Azerbaijan has never given any reasons for being accused of pursuing invasive goals or thoughts,” Tofig Abbasov said.

According to him, Azerbaijan made a huge breakthrough in 2023, which is of immense significance not only for the republic itself and the Azerbaijani people, it is also an indicator for other countries and peoples who are experiencing oppression, pressure and yoke of imperial forces. “In this case, the most “obvious” embodiment of neocolonial aspirations is France, and in his interview President Ilham Aliyev dwelt extensively on how Paris made repeated attempts to create problems for Baku, tried to pass a resolution condemning the just struggle of the Azerbaijani people for the liberation of its occupied territories through the UN Security Council and, on the contrary, to justify Armenia in the face of the terrible crimes it committed and is still trying to carry out against Azerbaijan and Azerbaijani people. All these attempts are futile and, as the President said in the interview, our strength lies in the fact that we are right, we have made no mistakes and miskicks for anyone to condemn us or charge us with anything. On the contrary, Azerbaijan acts exclusively in line with the requirements and norms of international law. Azerbaijan develops and creates a favorable environment around itself in the region,” the expert stressed.

In this regard, the political observer said it is not accidental that the format of interaction "3+3" comes from President Ilham Aliyev, who sees the need for the problems of our region to be solved by the efforts and forces of those countries that have a physical presence here, and not by external forces that seek to interfere in foreign processes, create confusion, confusion and chaos in the general situation.

In this regard, the pundit said it was not accidental that the format of a “3+3” interaction comes from President Ilham Aliyev, who sees the need for problems of our region to be addressed through the efforts and resources of countries that have a physical presence here, not by external forces that seek to interfere in other’s processes, create confusion, turmoil and chaos.

“In his interview, the President spoke at length about the very flawed role France is playing in the current environment. Yes, it is not the fault of the French people. Although it was them who elected Macron and his team to lead the country, the responsibility for all the mistakes made by Paris rests squarely with Emmanuel Macron as the first person of the state, the president of the Fifth Republic who not only has no intention of admitting his mistakes in the Azerbaijani track, but also puts a good face on a bad game when trying to whitewash Armenian radicalism and nationalism and makes no secret of the fact that he relies on the Armenian segment in his domestic policy. Azerbaijan, for its part, is strictly guarding its interests and does not allow any interference in its internal affairs. The head of state drew the audience's attention to the fact that certain political circles in France are trying to introduce a policy of sanctions against Azerbaijan through the legislative bodies and international structures purely out of helplessness, hopelessness after the scandal over the “spy scare” in Azerbaijan, having embarrassed and disgraced themselves before to the whole world. The question may be asked: why? What did Azerbaijan do wrong? Whose rights has it violated?”, Abbasov pointed to the questions that are still open.

Speaking about Armenia's attempts to secure the support of external forces, he said that, besides France, there was a couple of countries that sing along Armenian radicalism and nationalism. Nevertheless, the majority of the world community knows Azerbaijan as a country that is always in the orbit of sound logic and tries to bring into the international environment precisely the notes that would contribute to strengthening security.

“It is not by chance that the President also touched upon the activity of the Baku Initiative Group, which consists of representatives of many states friendly to our country. This initiative should be perceived within the framework of the successful steps that Azerbaijan and personally President Ilham Aliyev took as Chair of the Non-Aligned Movement. Azerbaijan was able to create a group that openly states that the method of old metropolitanates will not work anymore,” the political observer said.

Another issue the President touched upon in his interview was the Great Return Program. “The President spoke about the sequence of construction and reconstruction work, did not overlook the problem of drinking water, which Azerbaijan is also solving properly, spoke about the Sarsang and other reservoirs that were polluted by Armenians during their occupation. The head of state urged primarily Azerbaijan’s private sector to be active in the restoration of our territories, and also our compatriots from Baku, Sumgayit, other cities and districts to contribute to this process. This fragment of the interview certainly deserves great attention. Ilham Aliyev's call as the leader of the country should be heeded,” the expert believes.

Emphasizing again that 2023 and its results were a turning point for Azerbaijan, Tofig Abbasov said that in the interview with local TV channels the President spoke about 20 directions, if not more, in which we have succeeded, achieved our goals, and most importantly, are creating very favorable support so that there is no decline in the future. “This, of course, is a call to all Azerbaijanis, even those living outside the country. There are many tasks, many directions, and in all these directions the President himself takes a very active position, showing how decisive the human factor is in the current conditions. Most importantly, our President demonstrates a brilliant example of how a person who makes a promise acts responsibly and keeps it, i.e. his deeds and words never diverge. All our contemporaries should have such an approach. We are certainly far from illusions; there are many problems that require a responsible approach. In particular, we have not yet succeeded in signing a peace agreement with Armenia, which, I am convinced, should take into account the example demonstrated by Azerbaijan, i.e. a responsible approach, specificity in laying down the methods to be applied, and confidence that if we set tasks, we will succeed in achieving them,” Tofig Abbasov believes.

The political observer expressed his confidence that the line towards economic development will be in force, because the social mood of our society depends directly on it. “Thanks to the efforts of President Ilham Aliyev, several large investment packages have been implemented since 2018, which imply support for vulnerable categories of the population. In general, economic growth plays a colossal role for the functioning of social drivers. In this regard, Azerbaijan is also proposing a good model for everyone, including neighboring Armenia, which is still lingering and always waiting for help from abroad. As we know, it is the only country that has a section in its budget on attracting resources from outside - from the diaspora. President Ilham Aliyev reminded in the interview again that everything we do, we do at our own expense. Apart from two schools being built in Karabakh by Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, we are implementing everything ourselves. That is, we do not need donors. Yes, if there are those interested, let them show their capacity, their participation, but we can’t let the grass grow under our feet, as Armenia does. On the contrary, we try to be on top of our game. Because we believe in ourselves, in our ability, and in this respect, of course, we have also managed to win the attention of the world community. It is no coincidence that the ranks of our partners have significantly expanded in recent years, which is certainly gratifying. Together with our partners and allies, we are ready to apply our conditions and opportunities to eliminate the unsolved problems,” the expert concluded.