Speech by Ilham Aliyev at the opening ceremony of the 35th annual meeting of Islamic Development Bank Group

In the name of Allah, the Merciful and the Compassionate!

Dear President of the Islamic Development Bank, Dr. Ahmed Mohammed Ali!

Distinguished guests!

Ladies and gentlemen!

Let me warmly welcome you all to Azerbaijan. Welcome to Azerbaijan!

The fact that the annual meeting of the Islamic Development Bank Board of Governors is held in Azerbaijan is a remarkable event for our country. I am sure that it will be successful and contribute to the deepening of cooperation between member-states of the bank. I also hope that a broad opinion exchange is held about the bank’s prospects.

The relations between the Islamic Development Bank and Azerbaijan are developing successfully and rapidly. Figures confirming that have already been provided here. We have been benefiting from this productive cooperation for many years. The Islamic Development Bank has contributed a lot to Azerbaijan’s successful economic development. I am sure that this cooperation will deepen in the coming years and we will continue our successful collaboration to resolve the economic and social issues our country is facing.

Our cooperation has a great future. Azerbaijan is developing and the projects implemented here through the bank are paying off. We will continue our economic reforms in the future to ensure comprehensive development of our country. In other words, I would like to emphasize that cooperation between the Islamic Development Bank and Azerbaijan has so far been very successful. We are very pleased with this cooperation and hope to further deepen it.

I think today’s meeting will further expand relations between the bank’s member-countries and strengthen Islamic solidarity. Azerbaijan is making effort to strengthen Islamic solidarity. Although we are a relatively new independent state, we are already active members of the Organization of Islamic Conference. Numerous productive activities have been held in Azerbaijan through the Organization. The strengthening of Islamic solidarity is our common task. We can strengthen this solidarity by mutual political support. We can further strengthen it by developing economic relations. Such opportunities are available and we are all interested in expanding cooperation between Organization of Islamic Conference member-states. Azerbaijan, for its part, will continue working in this direction. We must strengthen our ties not only in economic and political spheres, but also in all other areas – cultural and humanitarian.

I am proud to say that in 2009 Baku was declared the capital of Islamic culture, and different activities were held here throughout the year. In other words, we are trying to contribute to the cooperation among Muslim countries and will continue these efforts.

I would like to touch upon the thoughts voiced by a great friend of Azerbaijan, Dr. Ahmed Mohammed Ali. I want to thank him for the kind words about the Azerbaijani state and people, and for his views on our country’s key and most painful problem – the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over Upper Qarabag. These thoughts are very valuable, they are an indicator of real friendship. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our Muslim brothers and sisters for supporting Azerbaijan’s fair cause.

The Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over Upper Qarabag has been causing major problems for our country and region for many years. As a result of Armenia’s unfounded territorial claims, 20 per cent of Azerbaijan’s internationally recognized territory is now occupied by Armenian armed forces. As a result of this occupation and the policy of ethnic cleansing, one million Azerbaijani citizens have become refugees and IDPs in their own country. Almost all buildings and infrastructure on our occupied territories have been destroyed and museums looted. Armenian vandals have desecrated the graves of our forefathers, historical monuments, mosques. The occupied lands have turned into a dead zone. Azerbaijanis had lived there for centuries.

Armenia’s policy of grab is still ongoing. Upper Qarabag and the districts adjacent to it have been under occupation for many years. Upper Qarabag is native Azerbaijani land, and I have no doubt that Azerbaijan will restore its territorial integrity. A settlement is possible only within the framework of our territorial integrity. There are many decisions and resolutions of international organizations supporting our position, the position of truth and justice. Mr. Ahmed Mohammed Ali spoke about this today. The UN Security Council, i.e. the highest international body, has passed four resolutions on the issue. These resolutions explicitly state that Armenian armed forces must unconditionally withdraw from Azerbaijani territories. But these resolutions are not being fulfilled.

The Organization of Islamic Conference has repeatedly passed similar resolutions. The OSCE, the European Parliament, the Council of Europe, other international organizations recognize and support Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity. However, Armenia is flouting international law. Armenia ignores the decisions of international organizations. An end must be put to this policy of grab, Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity must be restored and all the victims of occupation must return to their native lands.

I want to repeat that this is the biggest and the most painful problem for our country. It has been our top priority since Azerbaijan regained its state independence.

Despite that, we have covered a long and glorious road in the years of independence. In 1991, when Azerbaijan gained independence, our situation was unenviable. On the one hand, there was Armenian occupation, while on the other the negative processes and economic recession had practically paralyzed our country. However, thanks to the will of the Azerbaijani people and the efforts of our nationwide leader Heydar Aliyev, Azerbaijan came out of the crisis with dignity. Stability, both economic and political, was established in the mid-1990s and facilitated our rapid development. Our comprehensive development has enabled us to resolve the problems our country has faced.

In 1995-2010, over $80 billion was invested in our economy, triggering the development of different economic sectors. Certain figures confirming our economic development were revealed here today. From the standpoint of economic development, Azerbaijan is actually the most rapidly developing country. The GDP growth, growth in industrial production, attraction of investment and, most importantly, poverty reduction by more than four times are our key results. This confirms that we have chosen the right path. We have been a market economy for only about 20 years. Before that, when we were part of the Soviet Union, there was no market economy in Azerbaijan. Despite that, the private sector accounts for 85 per cent of our economy, and its development is a priority for us. We are taking measures to encourage private sector growth, so that there is a strong class of entrepreneurs in Azerbaijan, and we can already see results.

We have been trying to develop all economic sectors, to develop the non-oil sector. And we have achieved major successes in this area. Evidence of that is the fact that despite the economic and financial recession and, as you may know, the significant decline of the oil price, Azerbaijani economy grew by over 9 per cent last year. This growth is the result of the work done to this end. Azerbaijani economy is diversified and no longer depends on one sector. Azerbaijan is a country favorable for investment. Both domestic and foreign investment is protected by the state, which enables us to rapidly develop our economy.

We are also working closely with international financial institutions, and this cooperation is producing wonderful results. In general, there is economic and political stability in the country. I think this is the foundation of our successes because if there is no stability, economic development and investments are out of the question. We know this only too well because we have gone through different periods. We know that when stability is undermined, it immediately affects economic issues.

Today Azerbaijan is very optimistic of the future. We are not complacent with our economic achievements. There are major objectives ahead of us: to make Azerbaijan one of the most developed countries. There are already excellent results. Some figures were revealed here today. Azerbaijan is the most competitive economy in the CIS and 51st in the world. We are still at the start of the road. Thanks to the continuation of economic reforms and implementation of major projects, additional opportunities will be generated in the country.

In other words, economic stability enables us to conduct an independent policy. Azerbaijan is a country pursuing an independent policy. Our policy is based on the interests of the Azerbaijani people and has a positive regional impact. We take part in regional and international cooperation. Evidence of that is the immense energy projects being successfully implemented on Azerbaijan’s initiative. We have initiated the construction of oil and gas pipelines in many directions. Today these pipelines secure Azerbaijan’s economic interests, serve regional development, deepen regional cooperation and, in general, strengthen the energy security of the continent. We have successfully used our energy resources and channeled the revenues into the non-oil sector. Thanks to this we have further diversified our economy.

At the same time, we are applying the principles of transparency to our financial system and have achieved great successes in that. The State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan is a transparent entity which has been awarded by the United Nations. As an active member of the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative, Azerbaijan demonstrates leadership in this area. Azerbaijan’s energy resources will be helping us to strengthen our economy for many years to come, but our goal is to turn them into human capital. With this aim, serious steps are being taken in the social and humanitarian spheres in Azerbaijan.

We are implementing specific social programs. Education, health, culture, sport – these are our priorities. On the one hand, the fair distribution of revenues confirms that the principles of justice have set in. On the other, this enables us to effectively meet our goals. We are realizing major infrastructure projects, namely in the transport sector. They strengthen our country and carry international importance. The railways being built and corridors being opened on our initiative represent tremendous importance for the region. The construction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway will link Asia and Europe by a new railway. We put forward this initiative and mobilized initial funds. At the same time, the operation of the North-South corridor will enable Azerbaijan to expand its opportunities from this standpoint too. We have a favorable geographical location, but without the infrastructure it wouldn’t matter a lot. We must and will take advantage of our geographical location. Therefore, Azerbaijan will continue its historical mission. The Great Silk Way used to pass through Azerbaijan before. Today, by implementing modern infrastructure projects and putting forward different initiatives, we are reviving the historic Silk Way.

Many tasks still lie ahead of us. The successes we have made are inspiring us even more because as an economically strong and stable country we will certainly enhance our political clout. Azerbaijan’s role in the region and the world is strengthening. We have proved in international organizations to be a reliable partner. We have effective relations with our neighbors, relations built on mutual interests and respect. It is important for every country to have well-to-do neighbors.

We have clear plans for the future. We are working on the basis of programs. The successful implementation in 2004-2008 of the first program on socioeconomic development of districts has helped us diversify our economy. Today we are implementing the second state program. I am sure that thanks to the program, which covers 2009-2013, we will resolve our key infrastructure and social problems. Our programs are very specific. We have implementation mechanisms, schedules and, most importantly, the financial resources. This makes it possible to say that the second program will also be implemented successfully.

At the same time, I want to reiterate that we will be expanding our cooperation with international financial institutions. Namely, our cooperation with the Islamic Development Bank has great prospects. We would like to express our gratitude to the management of the Islamic Development Bank for helping us. This cooperation, this assistance, these loans had tremendous importance, especially in difficult years for our country. Today they are also very important, and I have no doubt that we will continue this successful cooperation in the future.

I want to repeat that today’s meeting is very special for our country. On the one hand, we are honored that such an international event is being held in Azerbaijan; on the other, I know that there are quite a few people among our visitors who have come to Azerbaijan for the first time. This will enable us to get to know each other better, establish personal contacts and step up ties at the level of ministers.

Azerbaijanhas a great history and culture. Today, our friend Dr. Ahmed Mohammed Ali voiced very valuable thoughts about the history of Azerbaijan. But the history of our independence is not too long. Therefore, sometimes there is not enough information about Azerbaijan in the world. This is a temporary problem. The number of people knowing Azerbaijan will increase over time and accurate and unbiased information about our country will prevail. We want to deepen cooperation within the Muslim world. We want Muslim states to always support each other. We must raise our voices in support for each other in all international organizations. We are doing that, but we must do that even more actively. Our strength is in our unity. We have a common goal. We want peace, tranquility and justice to be established on the planet. We want occupiers to vacate occupied lands, those affected by the occupation to return to their native and historical homes, and justice to be finally established. But this is not easy. Unfortunately, there are many injustices. We must jointly fight against them. We must raise our voices for the truth. At the same time, we must all become economically stronger.

I would like to reaffirm my respect for you and welcome you to Azerbaijan again. I am sure that your visit to Azerbaijan will be successful and pleasant to remember. Addressing the leaders of all delegations, I would like to ask you to pass on my warm greetings and best regards to the heads of state and government of your respective countries. Thank you.