President Ilham Aliyev attended the first session of the seventh term of the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan
The first session of the seventh convocation of the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan was held on September 23.
President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev participated in the session.
First, the national anthem of the Republic of Azerbaijan was played.
The head of state delivered a speech.
Speech by President Ilham Aliyev
- Dear MPs, ladies and gentlemen.
The Milli Majlis of the seventh convocation is beginning its work today. I would like to sincerely congratulate all the MPs on this occasion and wish the Milli Majlis the best of luck.
I am sure that the Milli Majlis and its MPs will continue to contribute to the comprehensive development of our country with their work, thus ensuring the sustainable development of Azerbaijan.
This year's presidential and parliamentary elections were held in the entire territory of our country for the first time in the history of our independent state. This is a historic event. The Second Karabakh War and the complete restoration of our sovereignty is a historic event on a global scale. The people of Azerbaijan put an end to the 30-year occupation by showing strong will and unity. The state of Azerbaijan has shown its strength, our people have demonstrated their indomitable spirit to the whole world. Therefore, I am sure that 2024 will be a year that will go down in history from this point of view. Because the presidential and parliamentary elections were held in all territories and the people of Azerbaijan once again showed their will.
The full restoration of our sovereignty as a result of the Second Karabakh War and the anti-terror operation ushers ample opportunities and opens new horizons for our country. The 30-year occupation was left behind. Our country has now embarked on large-scale construction and development work, and the results are obvious. In the last three to four years, the international positions of our country have further strengthened. We have succeeded in having the results of the Second Karabakh War and the anti-terror operation acknowledged by the whole world. However, there were countries and circles that did not want to accept it, and they are still there today. We all see that unfounded accusations against us, the accusations based on double standards are continuing. However, this cannot affect our resolve or the resolve of our people in any way.
Only one year has passed since the restoration of state sovereignty. Three days ago, we already celebrated this day as a holiday. However, I would like to say that there is no cause for becoming complacent. We will keep this glorious history in our hearts forever. The people of Azerbaijan, all future generations will be rightly proud of this glorious Victory. However, the tasks facing the country must be fulfilled so that we always develop, increase our strength and secure a safe life of the Azerbaijani people in the future.
Therefore, I would like to take this opportunity today to share my thoughts with you and the people of Azerbaijan about some of the tasks ahead of our country.
The number one priority is to increase our military strength. Although the Second Karabakh War and the anti-terror operation are now in the past, the processes going on in the world, new conflicts, the emergence of war zones and the increase of tensions around us, at the same time, the revengeful tendencies in Armenia compel us to keep this area in the spotlight at all times. Without military power, we cannot succeed in any sphere – neither economic nor political. I do believe that the history of independent Azerbaijan, including the 30-year occupation, is graphic evidence of that. Without the military capability and strength, we would never have been able to liberate our lands from the invaders. Not only those involved in politics, but I think anyone in the world can see that the concept of international law has been completely undermined. The security architecture formed after World War II no longer exists, the principle of “Might is right” prevails, and some major states are not even hiding this at all. In fact, we have been conducting a policy in this direction for many years. During the occupation, increasing our military strength was always our primary objective. Every year, when our state budget was approved in the Milli Majlis, everyone could see that military expenses were top priority. This should be the same today.
Yes, the country is facing challenging tasks, first of all, the task of restoring Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur. However, if we reduce our attention to the military field and do not ensure the appropriate level of funding for it, problems may await us in the future.
Revengeful forces are raising their head in Armenia. These are not only marginal political elements. Today's Armenian government lives with these ideas and fantasies as well. They do not want to come to terms with the results of the Second Karabakh War and the anti-terror operation. Although they are saying one thing, their work, policies and steps create a completely opposite picture. The formal keeping of the Minsk Group, which has had no functional significance to date, is proof of this. Everyone knows perfectly well why the Minsk Group was created – to resolve the Karabakh conflict. The Karabakh conflict has been resolved, completely, once and for all. The official circles of Armenia seem to admit this in their statements. But at the same time, despite our insistence, keeping the Minsk group officially alive can only serve one purpose – the territorial claims against us will arise again. The countries standing behind Armenia, their activities, their decisions, resolutions, statements - all this shows that this dirty game against us is not over yet. Foreign circles unable to digest our Victory are preparing new plans against us. There is no need to elaborate further on this. But the obtained data is evidence of that. This is exactly the purpose of the media campaign, the aspersion, libel and defamation campaigns - to keep this topic on the daily agenda and live with the hope that one day if Azerbaijan stumbles or weakens, these ugly actions against us will start again. In other words, we should be aware of that. The government of Azerbaijan knows this, and the public should know this too. Therefore, we have no right to be complacent.
This is why I am saying it again: the number one priority is to build up our military strength, and we are doing that. In the time after the Second Karabakh War, we have significantly increased our military capacity, new armed units have been created and the number of special forces has been increased several times. New special forces and commando units have been set up, and their number will increase year by year. Other special purpose units have also been established and they are trained day and night. The combat capability of our army is increasing and their provision with equipment is and will be maintained at the required level. Armenia and any country behind it should know that it will not be possible to talk to us in the language of blackmail and ultimatums. We are prepared, capable and always ready to give an answer.
In parallel, we must develop our domestic military industrial complex more rapidly. Major funds have been allocated for this purpose this year and will be allocated next year as well. Large-scale modernization work is under way in all our military plants. Therefore, new equipment, machinery and ammunition are manufactured. The introduction of new production sites with several foreign partners has already assumed practical proportions. In the next year or two, our military industrial complex will grow even larger both in terms of the assortment and quality of the products to be manufactured. There are several goals here. First of all, the creation of a domestic military industrial complex is evidence of the overall strength and development of a country. Secondly, we should be less dependent on external sources. Of course, it will not be possible to completely eliminate this dependence. We should know this as well. But we should provide ourselves with local production to the maximum extent possible. Technological innovations in this field, especially in modern times, will strengthen our overall intellectual potential. Because the personnel working in this field are building and will build their work on completely new technological and methodological foundations. Thousands of new jobs will be created. All these are not only our plans, but specific projects we have implemented. Of course, there is no need to talk extensively about these projects. I should just note that this will be one of our main priorities for the coming years.
Another factor is that countries playing the leading part in the world’s arms market are involved in their own affairs these days. They are busy trying to satisfy their domestic needs. Therefore, there is a natural shortage in the world arms market. We should also take this into account. At the same time, this field will allow us the opportunity to expand the export geography of our military-technical goods. Today, Azerbaijan exports products of the military industrial complex to dozens of countries, and this geographical reach is expanding by the year. This is a part of our negotiations with a number of countries, including talks in economic and investment fields. We will become a major player in the world arms market in the near future, and we have these opportunities.
You also know quite well that we have recently announced this field open to the private sector, and I am glad that the private sector has responded positively to my call. Several Azerbaijani private companies are already involved in the development of the military industrial complex, of course, on the condition of obtaining licenses from relevant state institutions. Thus, this will make it possible to raise production in this field to the value of billions of dollars in just a few years.
Another important priority is related to the protection of our borders. I have already shared my thoughts about this with the public several times. Currently, engineering work is under way on our conditional border with Armenia. At the same time, our border with other neighbors should be equipped with modern infrastructure.
After the Second Karabakh War, the length of our conditional border with Armenia, which used to be under occupation, exceeds 500 kilometers. The natural terrain and geography of this conditional border is very difficult. It is located in very harsh places from the point of view of climate, and it is not so easy to carry out service there. Some of our service areas are located at an altitude of over 3,000 meters. Despite this, our military positions along the border are being reinforced. We are strengthening the conditional border because any provocation can be expected from Armenia at any moment. The Armenian side is getting extensively armed. At the same time, it conducts military exercises with foreign countries and major powers. Western countries are sending weapons and ammunition to Armenia. In some cases, it is open, as in the French-Armenian military cooperation, while in some cases it is concealed. However, we need to know everything now. And we know who sends what to Armenia and when, which military cargo planes land at Armenian airports and which military products are transported to Armenia on those cargo planes. In other words, the plans of some Western countries to turn Armenia against us are obvious. Of course, they are not interested in the Armenian people. The Armenian people are just a tool in their hands, a tool for keeping Azerbaijan under constant pressure, using the territory of Armenia to create sources of threat for Azerbaijan and other neighbors of Armenia, and thus, securing their own interests. This methodology is quite straightforward. But they should also know that we will not allow that. I have already said that if we see a real threat, it will not be very difficult for us to nip it in the bud wherever it is. Everyone should understand this. Border protection is and should be organized by visual, infrastructure and technological means. But we should all know that this is a very big and large-scale task.
Strengthening the border with other neighbors is one of the most important conditions, and I am sure that the people of Azerbaijan also understand this. Our land borders are still closed, i.e. for the movement of people. We do understand that this creates certain difficulties. However, today's geopolitical situation is quite obvious, and this is the only correct step to ensure internal security. All necessary measures are taken to protect internal security. There are also threats – real and potential. Relevant agencies are working hard to eliminate these threats. The public is also updated on this issue to the possible extent, information is provided. However, since this area is very sensitive, I think the people of Azerbaijan understand that it would be inappropriate and harmful to talk about it. But I can say with absolute certainty that the closure of our land borders over the past years has saved us from many major disasters. Even today, when the borders are closed, dangerous actions do take place and these actions are prevented. Therefore, the protection of our borders will safeguard us from external risks. There are no internal risks in Azerbaijan. Security and peace have been ensured in Azerbaijan for many years. Our stability can be an example for the whole world. Everyone knows that no country can develop in the absence of stability. Today, everyone can see the situation and the fate of destabilized countries. This is the main condition for security, development and the attraction of foreign investment. All other security measures are also in place. Azerbaijan is a strong state and our strength is increasing by the year.
Another important task is related to ideological security, and here too we must always be careful. Because ideological provocations against us are continuing. It is true that they have not yielded any results yet, because the strong will of our people and our national spirit are in their way. It is impossible for any ideological provocation to take root here. But at the same time, this should not make us complacent. Therefore, we must always be ready for it and expose the dirty games played against us, as we have done, officially, in the public space and in the media. I believe that the people of Azerbaijan see everything perfectly well, know everything perfectly well – who is our friend and who is our enemy. The main criterion is the attitude of the countries to the restoration of our sovereignty. There is no need to go any further. Who supported and congratulated us on the restoration of our sovereignty? These are our friends. Who was and is against it? They cannot be our friends. During the occupation, this was not so clear. In other words, although it was clear to us, it was not clear to the general public. Because foreign propaganda was once deeply rooted in Azerbaijan, and not just from one source, but from several ones. Foreign forces and countries were competing for having a say in Azerbaijan’s public opinion. They wanted to change the situation in their favor by instigating a provocation in our media through their henchmen. In other words, there have been many such attempts, but the strong will and unity of our people did not allow it to happen. This continues to this day. This is why I am saying it again - there are very simple criteria. Whoever is happy with the return of Karabakh to Azerbaijan is our friend and brother. Whoever is disappointed by this and wants to incite the separatists again, whoever invites them to foreign countries, whoever gives them visas, whoever conducts a smear campaign against us through various tools, how can they be our friend? This is why, as they say, everything is clear and visible today. Let me say again - there weren’t such open and provocative steps against us during the occupation. Because that occupation was completely in the interests of the forces against us - let the state of Azerbaijan always be under pressure, always need some mediators, let our people always suffer morally, let the refugees suffer. It does not take a great mind to understand the feelings of the people who have lost their land. So we saved our lives from this trouble, and the masks of the anti-Azerbaijani forces were immediately torn. We see it today. I think there is no need to name anyone. Everyone can see everything. Therefore, issues of ideological security should always be in the spotlight for state institutions, legislative bodies and public activists. We are certainly taking our own steps in this matter and will continue to take them.
I would also like to touch upon another issue. I said this at the opening of the Garabagh University in Khankendi three days ago, and I want to say it again. The importance of the issue suggests that the education of the young generation in the national spirit is not just words. This is the main guarantor of the future development of Azerbaijan, because countries are governed by their people. People's ideas, thoughts and courage, and, conversely, different negative characteristics and the situation of countries depend on that to a large extent. Therefore, we should bring up a young generation that would be knowledgeable and educated, it should be attached and devoted to the Motherland. It should not succumb to external influence, it should be proud. In fact, after our glorious wars, including the Second Karabakh War and the anti-terror operation, if we are not proud, then which people should be? Who won this brilliant Victory in a matter of 44 days, giving martyrs? May Allah rest the souls of all our martyrs in peace. The anti-terror operation, which lasted for several hours under tremendous foreign pressure – I am not talking about other factors, separatism was rooted out in Azerbaijan – who else could do this? In other words, it is the people of Azerbaijan who has the biggest right to be proud of our country and people.
Let me say again that this is why we, our entire society, should always be vigilant. I also said this in Khankendi: the main sources of education are family and school. This is the key. Of course, society, the general atmosphere prevailing in society, as they say, the climate – all this has a serious impact on the consciousness and future of the young generation. Therefore, this issue should always be in the spotlight. I am sure that this will be the case. Our MPs, of course, should also always keep this issue in mind during meetings with their electors.
The restoration of Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur is, of course, an important task for all of us.
If I start to list the things we have done since the Second Karabakh War, I will have to speak in front of you for several hours. I would just like to bring a few figures to your and the public's attention. After the war, the amount to be spent by the end of this year is 19 billion manats. Most of the funds is channeled into infrastructure projects. At the same time, efforts are being made to return former IDPs to their homes, and more than 8,000 former IDPs have already resettled in Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur. Their number will increase every month and every year.
Infrastructure projects have reached very large proportions, 3,000 kilometers of highways have been built. Among general projects, 45 tunnels are to be built and the length of these tunnels is 70 kilometers, i.e. it is not an easy task to build a tunnel and a road in those mountains. The construction of 450 bridges is also planned. Railways and two international airports have been commissioned. Energy potential has been strengthened and 270 megawatts of hydropower plants have been put into operation in the three years, and this process is ongoing. Schools, hospitals, social facilities, villages are under construction. In other words, in a nutshell, large-scale work is under way for the revival of Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur. I don't know if similar restoration work has ever been done in any country in history or not. However, this also shows that it has always been the most important issue for us - new settlements were built for IDPs both during the occupation and especially in the current conditions.
Specific work is under way to protect our cultural and historical heritage. We are restoring our historical monuments. Seven mosques destroyed by the Armenians have been rebuilt. The construction of eight mosques is still under way. Victory museums, occupation museums, victory parks, such large-scale work is under way in this geography. This, let me say again, shows the great capabilities of our people. And I am not talking only about financial resources here. At the same time, the state we have built has technical capabilities. There is also personnel training. Because doing these things - laying power lines in the mountains more than 3,000 meters high in winter - requires truly great professionalism. So this is the potential of our country. We are ready for it. As soon as we freed our lands, we started this work immediately. I would even say that the 44-day Second Karabakh War was not even over yet, but we had already started building the road infrastructure in Aghdara district. Of course, things will go faster in the coming years. In the near future, the next year's budget will be discussed in the Milli Majlis. I am sure that MPs will approve the government's plans for Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur, and we will ensure it. Of course, we must have the economic opportunities to do all these things. I have to say that we are doing all these things at our own expense. To date, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan have been the brotherly states that have helped us in the reconstruction work. A school and a children's creative center were built in Fuzuli, and currently the Kyrgyz Republic is also engaged in the construction of a school in Aghdam district. That is it. Other than that, as they say, we have not received a single stone from anyone. We are doing all these things at our own expense. There are many donor organizations in the world, but they are, as they say, indifferent to this issue. There are thousands of foreign representatives who have seen this large area in this plight. Seeing this and not doing anything tangible shows again that this attitude towards us must be taken into account. This should demonstrate to us again that we should only rely on our own strength and trust our own potential.
I think that this year's economic indicators have been positive. In the first eight months, the economy grew by more than 4 percent, in the non-oil sector it was 7 percent. We have been reducing our foreign debt year by year on my orders, and today it accounts for only 7.5 percent of the gross domestic product. We can say that we have repaid almost all the key loans, and if we view our debt in absolute numbers, it is about 5.3 billion dollars. We can repay it in one day. I don't want to compare ourselves to any other country, but let me tell you one figure: in some developed countries, including some countries that want to lecture us, the foreign debt accounts for 100 percent of the gross domestic product or even higher. So, this is just a small reference.
Of course, in order to implement our future plans, including the improvement of the well-being of our citizens, the economy must always develop. We have implemented four packages of social reforms since 2018. The value of this package of social reforms is 7 billion manats and it covers four million people. During the last five years, the minimum wage in Azerbaijan has increased 2.7 times and the minimum pension 2.5 times. I must also inform you that an instruction has already been given that the minimum wage and minimum pension will be increased again from next year.
In other words, this social-oriented course once again shows our overall policies and intentions. Of course, the diversification of the economy, the development of the non-oil sector and the expansion of local production are the primary conditions for pursuing our policy in this direction in the future. Today, new production sites are opening in all regions of our country, including Karabakh. The opening of the “Istisu” mineral water factory has a tremendous symbolic meaning, and “Istisu” is on our tables again. This has a great symbolic meaning and means the restoration of historical justice. After all, the Armenians destroyed both the factory and the sanatorium that used to operate there in Soviet times.
I would also like to touch upon the issue of normalization of relations with Armenia. I would like to state again that peace negotiations were initiated by Azerbaijan during the Second Karabakh War. At that time, neither Armenia nor any other country in general had developed their own opinion about what the future would hold. It was our initiative. After a while, when we saw that it remained unanswered, we already laid out the basic principles, made them public and the process begun. But what do we see? We see that Armenia is artificially delaying this issue. Because from the time we sent our first draft to Armenia, there have been 10 exchanges of comments and each time certain provisions were agreed, i.e. there was certain progress in this work. We should state everything the way it is. But at the same time, as months passed, we naturally expected Armenia to share its comments with us more promptly and flexibly. But we saw the exact opposite. We had to wait 70 days to receive the final version from them. On June 24, our comments were sent to them and they sent us a reply at the end of August or at the beginning of September. So what was this answer? All non-agreed provisions were removed from their version of peace treaty. In other words, such a primitive and inadequate step could not have been expected. Provisions that were removed from the text, i.e. those proposed to be removed at their request, are important. Without them, the peace treaty will be incomplete. Therefore, such an insincere attitude naturally makes us think. In addition to the factors I have just mentioned, if we put all these facts into a framework, we will see that both the rapid armament, the revenge tendencies and the fact that Armenia's patrons have raised the issue of Karabakh against us again, this inadequate and insincere attitude in the progress of the peace agreement, the delaying tactics and other issues suggest that Armenia does not want peace, it wants to bide time and use this time to build up its military potential with the support of its foreign patrons. Representatives of some European countries, not only European but also other Western countries have already started working in the Armenian army. A so-called “European peace” or “observer” mission has been illegally established on our border, while this represents a violation of the agreement reached. I would like to remind both the European Union and Armenia that an agreement was reached at the Prague meeting in 2022, and yes, we also agreed – that a small number of observer missions should be stationed on the Armenian side in the direction of the conditional border, for only two or three months. So this was agreed with us. But after that, they extended it without our approval, increased their number, representatives from Canada were included, and this actually has become a NATO mission. After that, a “binocular diplomacy”, namely, policy was carried out against us. Foreign representatives went there day and night and looked at us through binoculars. What did they want to show us?! Is this a demonstration or a cheap show?! All these factors should make us think carefully, and they do, of course. Therefore, if they are not interested in normalization of relations with Armenia, then it will not happen. In any case, we will not take a step back from our position. Anyone can say what they want, we don't need mediators. It is true that we do not object to some mediation proposals, simply for the sake of political decency. But as a matter of fact, we do not need a mediator. We delimited the state border with Armenia without mediators. We simply told them that the four villages of Gazakh district should be returned to us unconditionally, and I said this for the last time in February this year. I believe that these words were very convincing, and after that, four villages of Gazakh, which were under occupation, were returned to us without any mediators and without any conditions. Thus, we have started not only delimitation but also demarcation. This is why we don't need any mediators in the negotiations. Armenia should not rely on that either. In general, it should not rely on anyone else. If they want to live in this geography and if they want to live in the conditions of security, they must make serious adjustments to their policies towards their neighbors. This is first. Second, neither they nor those behind them should ever forget the 30-year occupation. But they want to forget it and want others to forget it too, as if this occupation never even happened. They should not forget the results of the Second Karabakh War. The Armenian army was crushed. Armenia signed an act of capitulation. After that, I gave the order and the glorious Victory march of the Azerbaijan Army was stopped. Today's reality once again shows that this was the right step, and the subsequent events are also obvious. As a result, September 20, the day of full restoration of our sovereignty, should not be forgotten, and this historic truth should always be at the negotiating table.
After World War II, no one offered a peace treaty to Nazi Germany. Fascist Germany was divided into several parts and the capitulating fascist state was punished. Here, the capitulated fascist state was not only not punished, they were given all the preferences. America is now giving them 250 million dollars. They will use this money for their internal purposes, while the saved money will be used to buy weapons to kill us. Who bears this responsibility and who will bear it in the future? Those giving them this money, including the so-called “European Peace Facility”. Look at the level of hypocrisy. The fund is intended for weapons and they call it the Peace Facility, Armenia uses it and gets free weapons from France. And this money is not paid either, from other places. So this is a serious matter and I would not like to talk too much about it. Simply put, our terms remain in place. Those arming Armenia should bear in mind that they will be directly responsible for all future developments, and naturally, official territorial claims against us should be stopped. Their constitution should be amended and the Minsk group should be abolished.
You know, during the years of occupation, our foreign policy was mostly focused on this direction, of course. And now, after our historic Victory, we have become freer in our foreign policy, and I would like to say a few words on this occasion: an independent and principled foreign policy is our main direction. We have never done anything against anyone, we have never interfered in anyone's affairs. But we have always taught a lesson to those who wanted to interfere in our affairs that they should not do so. There are and will be such attempts. It is true that they don't mean anything. However, this factor will certainly always be taken into account in our foreign policy. Whoever wants to cooperate with us in a bilateral format, on the basis of mutual respect, we will double our cooperation. But if someone thinks that they will come and dictate their will to us, that they will accuse us without grounds or that they will defame us by some means and we will be friends with these countries as if nothing had happened, this is a wrong idea, this will not happen! Azerbaijan has long established itself as a dignified and proud state. Especially, after our historic Victory, our international reputation has further increased. Our international positions have been strengthened and the international community is with us. Some Western countries believe that the international community is only about them and the states dependent on them I don’t want to mention. No, the international community means all countries of the world, and these countries voted for us unanimously. The holding of COP29 in Azerbaijan is a decision made unanimously by nearly 200 countries. And it is an important factor that shows our international authority and respect. After that, there will be no step back in foreign policy. The number of our friends on all continents is increasing. We will conduct a more active foreign policy now - after the Second Karabakh War and after restoring our sovereignty. Now very serious contacts are being established with regions where we did not exist before, we are reviewing investment projects, and at the same time, new opportunities for cooperation in various fields are emerging. Of course, our relations with traditional partners and friends are in place and will continue to develop.
Of course, our country has many other tasks. I want to once again congratulate all members of the Milli Majlis on the occasion of the commencement of the seventh convocation of the parliament. I wish you all good luck and good health. Thank you.
