Mehriban Aliyeva: Azerbaijan became region’s rapidly developing country in short period of independence

Paris hosted a ceremonial event marking the 20th anniversary of Azerbaijan's restoring its independence and a presentation of the book titled "Azerbaijan" on Feb. 17, AzerTAj state news agency reported.

Azerbaijan's First Lady, President of the Hedyar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva honored the event, which was jointly organized by the Foundation and Azerbaijan's embassy in France.

France's Culture Minister Frederic Mitterrand extended his greetings over the anniversary of Azerbaijan's independence. He called France as one of the "closest" friends of Azerbaijani culture. The French minister praised contributions of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation to developing the culture in Azerbaijan. He said Azerbaijan is home to mugham and ashig music. The minister added that the French people like to listen to the music of Azerbaijani composers.

France's Culture Minister wished the cultural heritage of the two nations to become more popular. He praised the activities conducted by Mrs. Aliyeva within UNESCO. Frederic Mitterrand expressed his satisfaction with the expansion of cultural relations between the two countries.

The First Lady of Azerbaijan Mehriban Aliyeva also addressed the ceremony.

Mrs. Aliyeva thanked for care and attention to Azerbaijan and its culture in France. Mrs. Aliyeva voiced her satisfaction that the first event celebrating the 20th anniversary of Azerbaijan's restoring its independence was organized in France. Mrs. Aliyeva said that as an independent country, Azerbaijan is very young. However, this country, which is called the Land of Fires, has an ancient history.

Informing the participants in the event of Azerbaijan's history, Mrs. Aliyeva spoke about fights for Azerbaijan, which is located at the crossroads of East and West, in various historical periods. "Nevertheless, the Azerbaijani people defended and preserved their history, language, religion, culture, national identity," Mrs. Aliyeva underscored.

Mrs. Aliyeva also recalled Azerbaijan's achievements in the period of Democratic Republic.

Noting that the independence, which was gained in 1918, lasted only 23 months, the First Lady said that Azerbaijan faced with stringent laws of the Soviet regime for more than 70 years. But during all these years, the Azerbaijani people lived with the dream of independence and finally re-gained it. Although 20 years are a small period from the historical point of view, in this short period, Azerbaijan has achieved very great successes, and has become the most rapidly developing country in the region, said Mrs. Aliyeva.

"Of course, our most important asset is cultural heritage, old carpet school, unique miniatures, literature and poetry, music, dance, visual arts and architectural monuments of Azerbaijan. Dear friends, I would like to emphasize that our country has achieved all these successes in the presence of such a protracted and still unresolved problem as Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. We are sure that one day Azerbaijan's territorial integrity will be restored, and all refugees and internally displaced persons will return to their native lands," said Mrs. Aliyeva.