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BAKU, Azerbaijan, Oct. 27
By Elchin Mehdiyev - Trend:
Holding the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Summit in Baku is another great success for Azerbaijan, Azerbaijani MP from the ruling New Azerbaijan Party (NAP) Nagif Hamzayev told Trend.
Given the movement's scale, political and economic potential, as well as the potential in influencing world politics, the Baku Summit was extremely important for Azerbaijan, Hamzayev noted.
According to the MP, just after eight years of membership in the Non-Aligned Movement, Azerbaijan hosted a very important international political event, which is one of the largest in the country’s history.
"Of course, this moment cannot but attract the attention of political scientists and experts from around the world. Given that approximately 55 percent of the world's population lives in NAM countries, more than 75 percent of the world's oil and 50 percent of gas reserves are in these countries, holding such a summit in Baku creates effective platform of opportunities for the country and promises important dividends. Hosting an international event, where more than half of the world is represented, is undoubtedly another proof of conformity of Azerbaijan’s foreign policy with the NAM principles and its growing international image. But the most important thing is that the NAM Summit in Baku has become a good opportunity to attract world's attention to the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict," Hamzayev said.
Hamzayev noted that during the chairmanship, Azerbaijan will attract attention not only to its problem, but also serve to increase the movement's role and image in the system of international relations, the development of its basic principles at the international level.
"I am convinced that the 18th NAM Summit, as well as the period of Azerbaijan's chairmanship, will hold a special place in NAM's history. Azerbaijan, which has begun to chair the movement, will adequately cope with the entrusted responsibility," the MP added.
The MP also noted with regret that the Azerbaijani radical opposition is conducting the same campaign against Azerbaijan as Armenia, the occupying country.
"Statements voiced by the 'leaders' of the so-called National Council completely coincides with the ideological directions of the anti-Azerbaijani campaign of the occupying country. The main goal of the attempts of the illegal rally carried out on Oct. 19 was to create tension within the country, forcing state structures to take adequate steps and creating the ground for putting into operation the anti-Azerbaijani network abroad," the MP said.
According to Hamzayev, the provocative steps taken by the so-called National Council before the summit, were made with the aim of hindering the process.
"They are trying in every possible way to cast a shadow on the positive opinion formed in society about the Azerbaijani government and its policy. The reality is that every success achieved by the government under Ilham Aliyev’s leadership both in domestic and the foreign policy exacerbates the radical opposition’s fiasco," the MP added.
Hamzayev stressed that from their statements it is clear that confusion and illusions still reign in the minds of the “leaders” of the radicals and despite all the failures, they still haven’t gotten their minds around.
"The radical opposition has not existed for a long time as a political force, since it does not have an electorate. Their problem is that they do not perceive their country as their homeland. The concept of betrayal of national interests for them simply does not exist, since personal interests and illusory ambitions are above all. It seems that they have no idea that they are being used as a tool that supposedly will bring confusion and man-made chaos into the country," the MP added.
The 18th Summit of the heads of state and government of the NAM member countries was held in Baku on Oct. 25-26.
The representatives of 158 countries and international organizations participated in the summit. The foreign ministers, heads of state and government and other senior representatives also participated in the event.
Azerbaijan will chair this structure in 2019-2022.
The NAM, uniting the countries that did not join any military-political blocs during the Cold War, was transformed into one of the important multilateral mechanisms. Today, the NAM is the second political platform after the UN, uniting in its ranks the biggest number of countries.