State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) management and Yeni Azerbaijan Party (YAP) Sabail district division initiated meeting-seminars in nine economic regions fully embracing the country. Today, this initiative has already been realized in Ganjabasar region - Ganja town, Shamkir and Gazakh provinces. The delegation consists of the Milli Majlis (Parliament) commission for regional issues Zahid Garalov, who has worked as first advisor of the SOCAR Vice-president until recent times, professor Eldar Shahbazov, senior power engineer, chairman of the local YAP division Mohammadali Mammadzadeh, director of the Human Rights Institute of the National Academy of Sciences, doctor of political sciences Rovshan Mustafayev. Lately, the delegation has visited Marneuli province of friendly Georgia and met with Azerbaijani compatriots.

In the interview with AzerTAj correspondent, Mohammadali Mammadzadeh said that the major purpose of seminars is to explain the essence of oil strategy to people, architected and founded by President of Azerbaijan Heydar Aliyev. Secondly, we want to tell about the activity of Ilham Aliyev, the main performer of this strategy, worthy successor of Heydar Aliyev’s political course in the field of oil industry, he said. Mr. Mohammadali noticed that mostly people are unaware of Ilham Aliyev’s endeavors towards oil industry that is why all speeches were based on real facts as a worthy response to destructive opposition’s slander campaign.

First of all, the main objective was to bring to participant’s notice Ilham Aliyev’s idea that oil is not an end in itself in nowadays world but just a means for tackling global political, strategic, and economic problems. “Pursuing modern oil strategy of our President Heydar Aliyev, i.e supplying Azerbaijani oil to the world market, we will provide economic development of our country and our republic’s joining the ranks of the most leading and powerful world states” - this excerpt from his book “Caspian oil of Azerbaijan” has aroused a keen interest.

The main issue was connected with the component parts of the oil strategy. In order to answer this question, it has been stressed that oil strategy, founded and build up by esteemed President Heydar Aliyev is scientifically grounded by his reliable successor at the world arena Ilham Aliyev. The main points were delivered as follows: signing of international oil contracts with the biggest and famous oil companies taking into account national interests of Azerbaijan, establishment of gas and oil infrastructure in the region within a very short time beginning from the geological and geophysical evaluation of oil-gas fields up to the construction of mammoth terminals; desig and construction of pipes providing oil and gas export to the Black and Mediterranean sea basins, and resolution of geo-strategic, political and economic problems in this context.

According to the terms of concluded contracts, US $15 billion are to be invested to Azerbaijan. The importance of Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline is that this project erects an economic bridge between the Caspian and Mediterranean seas and gives an opportunity to produce influence on oil sale mechanisms internationally. Income from oil sales is transferred to the Oil Fund of the republic.

In order to boost the people’s faith in Ilham Aliyev, reporters have quoted famous world public figures such as John Hopkins Fred Star, scholar of the Washington University, as saying “Azerbaijan is the country which has great potential in the Central Asia and in the Caucasus. Culture, statehood, public relations in this country is intertwined with the democratic principles. This young country has some difficulties. To overcome such difficulties and to develop the state it needs such young leaders as Ilham Aliyev”.

Meetings-seminars are underway. The next trip is scheduled to Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic.