History is time enriched with quality. Any period of time can be history if it has meaning, quality and truth. There are days of great importance in the centuries-long rich history of Azerbaijan, when that period of time was formed as a period of independence, freedom, renaissance and progress in the destiny of our people. One of those days celebrated by our people is June 15 National Liberation Day.
June 15, 1993, which opened a new page in the history of Azerbaijan, is the date of liberation, the day when our people came out of the life-and-death war. The genius who created this great history is the National Leader of our people, Heydar Aliyev.
It is not for nothing that they say that history does not create personalities, history creates great personalities. It is thanks to their talent, foresight, phenomenality, bright intelligence that peoples and states manage to stand, develop and maintain statehood. The exceptional merits of the Great Leader in making Azerbaijan’s independence eternal and irreversible, increasing its influence in the region and the world, and finally becoming the most powerful state in its history are undeniable truth. Every moment of Heydar Aliyev’s life and activity was before the eyes of our people. The whole of Azerbaijan bears witness that this person lived only for his homeland and people. And our people, who appreciate these truths correctly, celebrate the 30th anniversary of the history of salvation with great solemnity.
The threat of loss of independence, from recession to progress
National Liberation Day is the day when the foundation of newly acquired and threatened independence is raised, and the chronicle of our rise is thrown. They said that if independence becomes stronger, protect it more. He has written his name as a savior leader in our history by coping with the most difficult process with his visionary policy and successful mission. By coming to political power for the second time, he saved Azerbaijan from the danger of destroying an entire nation.
After the restoration of independence in 1991, Azerbaijan faced a difficult test due to the incompetence of the incompetent forces in power in the country. This difficult situation created conditions for the weakening of the state and the occupation of our lands by Armenian armed forces. In the country of chaos and arbitrariness, crime is rampant, state authorities have been paralyzed. Illegal military units knew no one, left the defense of the land to fate and were not responsible to anyone. In such a situation, the people saw the way to salvation only in the Great Leader and called the genius to Azerbaijan with an urgent demand.
It is a fact that Heydar Aliyev loved his homeland and people with infinite love, and of course, in such a situation, he could not turn down the people’s demand, nor could he leave the homeland in a difficult day and remain silent. For this very reason, at the insistence of the people, the genius leader returned to Baku and thereby saved Azerbaijan from a great trouble.
Heydar Aliyev’s return to Baku on June 9 failed all the plans of our internal and external enemies. The visit of the national leader to ganja, who took on the mission of salvation, prevented the Civil War.
On June 15, 1993, the election of Heydar Aliyev as the Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the Republic of Azerbaijan entered our history as National Liberation Day, and that day was remembered as the beginning of the national state building of modern Azerbaijan. The Great Leader, who restored the lost confidence of the people, ensured the eternal independence of Azerbaijan.
In general, the years of Heydar Aliyev’s activity in 1993-2003 can be called a magnificent Chronicle of one life. In those years, the national leader not only saved our country from disintegration, coups, arbitrariness, but also gave our people a new, prosperous and independent Azerbaijan.
Under the leadership of the Great Leader, Azerbaijan traveled a great and honorable path during the 10 years after 1993. After this date, the foundation of a new ideology was laid, the main cornerstone of which are universal values such as Azerbaijaniism, national progress, and secularism. The years 1993-2003 were recorded in history as years of stability and development in our country.
If we have witnessed the success of Azerbaijan during these 10 years by taking a short excursion into history, we will see that during this period stability was first ensured within the country. The armed groups that arose in the south of Azerbaijan were neutralized without firing a shot. A regular army was formed, a cease-fire was reached in the former Karabakh war, and negotiations on the peaceful settlement of the conflict began. A new management system was formed in Azerbaijan, people’s confidence in their state was restored. Then the process of building a modern independent state began. The first parliamentary elections were held and the Constitution was adopted by referendum.
On February 24, 1994, the law “On Trade Unions” was adopted. This document, approved by President Heydar Aliyev, created a legal basis for the effective functioning of our organization. Due to its value and content, this law became a bright example of supporting democracy in deeds, not in words, not only in the country, but even in the CIS region.
The most powerful Azerbaijan in history
The Great Leader Heydar Aliyev always said that the state independence and national freedom of Azerbaijan is eternal and the future Azerbaijan will rise like the sun to the world. Today, independent Azerbaijan has truly become the country that the National Leader wants to see, and we see the foundation laid by Heydar Aliyev in all our successes. We must admit that the Great Leader entrusted us not only with a modern, eternal state. He also gave us a successor who can confidently lead our state into the future. His worthy successor, President Ilham Aliyev, who successfully implemented the strategy and the concept of growth he defined, turned Azerbaijan into the most powerful state in its history. Most importantly, Mr. Ilham Aliyev put an end to the 200-year conflict and 30-year war and erected an eternal statue in the hearts of the people as the Victorious Commander-in-Chief in the history of Azerbaijan.
But all these successes did not come easily. For years, pressure was applied to Azerbaijan from various directions, it was subjected to double standards by international organizations. There were very few states and organizations that heard the right voice of Azerbaijan. However, the fully independent policy of Ilham Aliyev, the progressive economic reforms implemented and, most importantly, the global energy projects implemented by him gradually increased the prestige of Azerbaijan and turned it into a reliable partner state in the world.
As a result of President Ilham Aliyev’s successful continuation of the Great Leader’s political course and statecraft traditions, Azerbaijan has gained a reputation as a powerful, leading and dominant state in the region in the last 20 years. An interesting comparison can be made. If the Great Leader saved Azerbaijan from destruction and gave our people eternal independence, Ilham Aliyev further strengthened this independence with his successful policy. If Heydar Aliyev saved Azerbaijan from the abyss with his great return, Ilham Aliyev turned this country into the most powerful state in its history.
The road to victory, the Shusha Declaration, the beginning of the Great Return
Ilham Aliyev made the Great Leader’s greatest will a reality. In 2003, President Ilham Aliyev, who said, “We will not agree to leave an inch of our land under the foot of the enemy,” while receiving a mandate from the people, made it a reality in 2020.
However, this victory was not easy. Along with all the political and economic processes, Ilham Aliyev, as the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, carried out serious reforms aimed at strengthening and further modernizing the arsenal of the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan. It was also natural. Because the country, whose lands were under occupation, needed a strong army. The country, unable to peacefully liberate its lands from occupation, eventually had to resolve the issue by force. Therefore, the Supreme Commander-in-chief formed an army in a short time, in which the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan ranked among the 50 most powerful armies in the world.
Over the years, the material and technical base of our Armed Forces has strengthened. The army-building policy of the Supreme Commander-in-chief yielded excellent results. The April battles in 2016 and the Gunnut victory in 2018 once again confirmed that the Azerbaijani army is capable of liberating our lands at any time.
In 2020, from September 27 to November 8, the Azerbaijani army, which successfully conducted the operation of the victorious Supreme Commander-in-Chief “Iron Fist”, brought the enemy to its knees in just 44 days. Every battle of the Azerbaijani army turned into a heroic epic. The brave sons of Azerbaijan wrote Our greatest history, put an end to the 30-year longing of the people at the cost of their blood and lives, without fear of anything, without hesitation, looking straight into the eyes of death. Azerbaijan was the first country in the world military history to wage a “smart War”. The course of the second Karabakh War showed that each of our fighters, from an ordinary soldier to a general, is a hero.
President Ilham Aliyev updated the last 200-year history of Azerbaijan with his diplomatic and leadership skills. After the Second Karabakh War, new realities emerged in the region, and June 15 National Liberation Day became a double holiday in the history of Azerbaijan – on that day in 2021, the Shusha Declaration was signed between Azerbaijan and Turkey.
The first guest of Karabakh was the President of the Republic of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan. In the city of Shusha, the cradle of Karabakh, which is our spiritual value, a declaration on alliance relations was signed between the two brother Presidents – Mr. Ilham Aliyev and Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The Shusha Declaration became one of the most important documents in the history of diplomacy. With this declaration, a new geopolitical configuration was created in the region.
It should be emphasized that Recep Tayyip Erdogan won the presidential elections in Turkey last month and was elected as the head of state for the next 5 years. His brother Mr. Ilham Aliyev was the first to congratulate him on this victory. Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s first state visit to Azerbaijan on June 12 was another celebration of true brotherhood. The fact that this trip took place two years ago on the eve of the signing of the Shusha Declaration sends some subliminal messages to the enemies.
Turkey and Azerbaijan are always by each other’s side – both in good times and in bad times. Today, Turkish companies have a large share in the reconstruction works carried out in Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur. However, we must admit that Azerbaijan is trying to revive its freed lands on its own. Without receiving help from any international financial institution, our state is carrying out unprecedented construction works in our lands freed from occupation, only at the expense of its own economic capabilities.
One of the priority issues set by President Ilham Aliyev is the opening of the Zangezur corridor. Serious work is being done in this direction as well. The construction of Zangilan-Horadiz highway and Horadiz-Aghband railway is almost completed. With the opening of the corridor, the main part of Azerbaijan will be connected with Nakhchivan. With this, Azerbaijan will make a great contribution to the Middle Corridor. Cargo from distant China will be delivered quickly to Europe by passing through Azerbaijan, and thus Azerbaijan will create a new transport and logistics bridge in Eurasia.
The humanistic traditions of the Great Leader continue
It is true that first vice-president Mehriban Aliyeva is the biggest supporter of President Ilham Aliyev’s completely independent policy, global projects implemented, socio-economic reforms implemented in the country, and finally, the great victory we have won. The first lady of the country has invaluable merits in the realization of these processes. Mrs Mehriban Aliyeva sets an example by her activity as the most faithful comrade-in-arms of the head of state.
The large-scale projects implemented by Mrs. Mehriban Aliyeva, who gained strength from the ideas of statehood of great leader Heydar Aliyev and President Ilham Aliyev, made her a favorite of the people.
The Heydar Aliyev Foundation led by Mrs Mehriban Aliyeva was created out of the desire to express the respect of our people for the memory of the great leader who entered our history as an independent state builder, reflecting his rich spiritual heritage, emphasizing the importance of the philosophy of azerbaijanism for our country, and instilling the ideas of national statehood in new generations.
The Heydar Aliyev Foundation, which started its activity since 2004, takes an active part in building a new society by implementing various projects in education, health, culture, sports, science and technology, ecology, social and other fields, and contributes to the socio-economic development of the country. Charitable actions carried out by the foundation in foreign countries raise the prestige of Azerbaijan.
The foundation has unparalleled services in the construction works carried out in our lands freed from labor. The Heydar Aliyev Foundation, the largest non-governmental organization in the Caucasus, has been giving new life to thousands of destroyed monuments that the enemy wants to lose our heritage for three years, has carried out the restoration of our mosques and cultural monuments in Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur, and is successfully continuing its benevolent mission even today.
The Great Leader’s greatest wish was to see Karabakh and Zangezur free. President Ilham Aliyev fulfilled his father’s will with dignity and turned the greatest dream of the Azerbaijani people into reality. We believe that the line of statehood of the Great Leader, who gave rise to our state and people and laid the foundation of today’s development, will also ensure the future rise of our republic.