Azerbaijan, Baku /corr. Trend I.Alizade / The Chairman of the State Committee for Work with Religious Organizations, Hidayat Orujov, said on 27 September in Baku that several countries want to impose their model of religious state onto Azerbaijan. "Efforts to establish a religious state in Azerbaijan have been observed. The religious groups which plan it, however, do not have prospects. Azerbaijan is a secular State and will remain so," Orujov said. According to him, several mosques in Azerbaijan are under the influence of foreign countries. However, Orujov did not identify those mosques. "We work with these mosques and present our conditions to them. Severe measures have been taken with regards to the religious communities of these mosques," he said.
The Committee Chairman touched upon several moments of concern in the religious sphere in Azerbaijan. However, he said that there are no serious threats for the country. "There are people amongst the non-traditional radical groups who are inclined to extremism. They are the ones requesting we provide special status for the religious communities they represent," Orujov said.