Address of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan to Azerbaijanis of the world

Dear compatriots!

Dear countrymen!

I would like to heartily congratulate you on the occasion of 31 December, the Day of Solidarity of Azerbaijanis of the world, a symbol of unity and cohesion of our people, national sympathy and loyalty to the Motherland. This remarkable holiday, established 20 years ago on the initiative of our nationwide leader Heydar Aliyev, warms the hearts of all our compatriots around the world with the warmth of the Motherland and inculcates love of the independent Azerbaijan.

The government of Azerbaijan attaches particular importance to the national unity of our compatriots and always keeps Diaspora building in focus. The Third Congress of World Azerbaijanis held in Baku this summer laid the foundation for a new phase of organizational development of our compatriots living in foreign countries and strengthening their ties with the Motherland.

The Congress gave an assessment to the activity of Diaspora institutions and passed important decisions that gave an impetus to efficient and organizational mobilization of our countrymen.

It is very encouraging that the ideas of Azerbaijanism among our compatriots living away from home and their sense of national sympathy are growing stronger by the day. Today, our compatriots living abroad are gradually stepping up their position in the public, political, cultural and business life of their respective countries and contributing a lot to the popularization of Azerbaijan in the world and promotion of our culture. The victory of our representatives at the prestigious international cultural competition, the Eurovision-2011 song contest, in the spring of this year has been facilitated by our compatriots living in European countries. I am sure that our Diaspora organizations will not be complacent with this progress, enhance their cooperation with the State Diaspora Committee and our diplomatic missions in foreign countries and respond to the new challenges in a more organized and efficient manner.

Dear compatriots!

This year we have widely celebrated the 20th anniversary of our independence. The progress Azerbaijan has achieved in 20 years demonstrates to the world the industriousness, high intellectual capacity and desire of our citizens to build and create. The crisis that gripped the country in the early years of independence, the difficulties and hardships our people faced are now in the past, the level of poverty and unemployment have fallen to the minimum. The prudent and planned reforms covering various spheres, the government programs and the implementation of large-scale infrastructure projects have turned Azerbaijan into a dynamic, strong and democratic state and asserted our country in the world as a reputable and reliable business partner. The fact that Azerbaijan, which has won a victory at this year’s election to the UN Security Council, was supported by 155 nations is vivid evidence of respect and trust of the international community in our country.

At the present stage, the pace of developments unfolding in the world changes fast. The problems, the dangerous trends emerging at global, regional and local levels lead to economic crises and social unrest and have a powerful impact on international relations. Under such circumstances, the strengthening of the progress achieved and sustainable development of our country are highly important. The recent order of the President on the preparation of a Concept “Azerbaijan 2020: Look into the Future” aims to clearly define future goals and ways of their solution in this particular sphere.

The power of the Azerbaijani state and the creative potential of our people inspire confidence that we can achieve all our goals. But we are still facing an unresolved problem – restoration of our territorial integrity impaired as a result of Armenian military aggression and the return of our refugees and internally displaced persons to their homes. I have no doubt that we will soon cope with this difficult problem too, put an end to the occupation and the injustices perpetrated before the eyes of the world.

Dear brothers and sisters!

One of the key conditions for shortening the road to victory and the triumph of justice is our unity and solidarity. So I am urging all Azerbaijanis to unite even more closely and keep on contributing to the protection of national and civil rights of our countrymen living in the world, consistently defending the interests of our independent state and enhancing its international authority.

I sincerely congratulate you on this cherished holiday and wish each of you good health, happiness and success!

Ilham Aliyev
President of the Republic of Azerbaijan

Baku city, 22 December 2011