Azerbaijan, Baku, April 16 / Trend /
Azerbaijan has managed to strengthen its international position at the beginning of this year as well, President Ilham Aliyev said addressing a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers on the results of the country`s socio-economic development in the first quarter of 2013 and upcoming challenges.
"Our bilateral relations are enhancing and deepening and number of partner countries is growing. Azerbaijan is able to defend its position in the international arena. Azerbaijan is a country worthy of great respect in the global scale. Since our words and deeds are same. Azerbaijan is a reliable partner. Our foreign policy is a logical continuation of domestic policy. Our foreign policy is aimed at further strengthening of the country, we ensure our national interests with flexible and purposive foreign policy, and our activities in international organizations are very effective. Azerbaijan is a member of the UN Security Council already for the second year, it has had and will have its principle say on all issues in this most influential organization," Aliyev said.
Speaking about the country's official position on the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, President Aliyev stressed that the internationally recognized territorial integrity of Azerbaijan is not, has never been and will never be the subject of negotiations. "We will never allow establishing second far-fetched Armenian state in the Azerbaijani lands and we will seek to resolve this conflict using all possibilities in the near future. This conflict should be resolved based on international law, four resolutions of the UN Security Council should be fulfilled unconditionally and occupation forces must leave our lands. Along with this, we must continue to build up and we are building up our force - political, economic and military. This is our sovereign right. I would like once again say that I have no doubt that Azerbaijan will restore its territorial integrity. Every day and every month brings our victory closer. Every month, every year Azerbaijan is becoming stronger, and Armenia even weaker. All interested organizations and countries dealing with this issue see and know it. The course, the development of the history is that Armenia is not able to compete with Azerbaijan. Their main hope is the external forces, the Armenian lobby and its accomplices, as well as political circles of some other countries. But our hope is our strength, the Azerbaijani people, the truth and justice, international law and our growing power. I am sure that Azerbaijan will restore justice and ensure its territorial integrity," Aliyev said.
He said that during the period of conflict Azerbaijan has very actively worked. "During the period of conflict, we have turned from a backward country into a developing one. During this period, we have conducted revolutionary reforms in the economic sphere.
"We were able to strengthen our country. Today, Azerbaijan and Baku are one of the world centers," President Aliyev said.
He said many international events are held in our country and in our city. "Political issues, issues of regional importance are discussed in Baku. The main topic of the Davos Forum held in Baku was the relations between the countries of the South Caucasus and Central Asia, as well as the future of this cooperation. This forum was held namely in Baku. That is, the international community recognizes Baku as a regional center," Aliyev underscored.
According to President Aliyev, Azerbaijan has become a major international factor. "Political initiatives cannot find their solutions without our consent and without ensuring of our national security interests," he said.
In many cases, Azerbaijan is the initiator of the important decisions related to energy diplomacy.
"Processes ongoing in this field depend on our decision. This is also a reality. Our word regarding the economic cooperation, addressing of transport issues, functioning of corridors connecting Asia with Europe, is crucial," he said.
President Aliyev said Azerbaijan's policy is a policy of good will. "We are establishing relations with all countries based on mutual respect and non-interference in each other's affairs. These are principles taken in the world scale and the international level. We know ourselves how to govern our country. We do not need advice from the third party. We are a strong country. There is unity between the people and authorities," President Aliyev said.
According to Aliyev, Azerbaijan's economic indexes are the best in the world. "Our economic development is the most rapid in the world. It is enough just to look at the results of the past ten years. Such a development as in Azerbaijan is very rarely seen in the world - both in the political, economic, as well as in the energy and cultural spheres. An indicator of this development is turning of our country into one of the world's centers, the international rating agency's assessments, and our election to the UN Security Council. Therefore, I would like to once again mention that in the sphere of foreign policy, we are interested in the development of equal relations with all countries also in the future," President Aliyev said.
He said Azerbaijan's principle position in foreign policy issues is yielding positive results in all areas. "We are an independent state in the true sense of the word. We will defend and strengthen the independence. We should have a strong economy for this purpose. Reforms carried out in the economic sphere, as well as the addressing of social issues strengthen us and allow us to have our say in the world scale. Therefore, we have adopted programs related to addressing of the economic issues, and regularly evaluate constructive work that is underway in the country," President Aliyev said.