“Our main national idea was the liberation of our territories… and we have achieved this. Of course, I have my own thoughts about further development, and in many cases, they will be decisive. However, I would like the discussions on the issue of our main national idea and views regarding our future development to also take place in society — among politicians, political scientists, scientists, representatives of the intelligentsia. That is, what should be the main national ideas in connection with our future development. This should be a topic of public discussion.”
This was stated by Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, in an interview with local television channels.
The head of state noted that “a new era must have new goals. We cannot enter a new era with old goals, as they have already been achieved. There are still countries that have been exploiting their historical past and historical successes for years, decades, even though they themselves have no relation to these victories. We do not want to be one of those countries. What we have done is already in the past. The people appreciate it and will continue to do so. It is wrong to constantly exploit our historical victory. Firstly, it would be politically incorrect. Secondly, society should not be in an atmosphere of complacency. We must always be very vigilant, as actions against us will not end with the issues we mentioned; they will continue. After all, we have caused shifts of a global scale. Analysts may see that the consequences of our victory were costly for some countries. We have shifted major layers in society. Our victory went beyond local significance. It became one of the main issues of the international agenda.”
Ilham Aliyev stated that the negative attitude towards Azerbaijan, “emanating from traditional sources, will not cease. Attempts to arm Armenia aim to keep us under constant pressure. All these are efforts to prevent us from living peacefully in the future, and, unfortunately, France is at the forefront here… In Armenia, there may arise unfounded illusions about them someday again tearing Karabakh away from us. Such ideas circulate in Armenian society, including within the country’s ruling group. I do not rule out that these ideas will gradually become even more widespread. Therefore, we should never be complacent.”
The head of state drew attention to the fact that over the past three years, Azerbaijan has come a long way: “New military units, new equipment, new ammunition, the most modern equipment played a very important role in the anti-terrorist operation. As I said, this year at least one billion manats of investment will be invested in our defense industry plants by both the state and the private sector. That is, we will provide ourselves with the necessary means on an even larger scale. We can never remain calm. The process of building our army will continue. Armenia should know that no matter how much weapons it buys, no matter how much support it receives, any source of threat to us will be immediately destroyed. I am not hiding this so that tomorrow no one can say that something unexpected happened. Let everyone hear that if we identify a real threat to ourselves, not this French junk, not these tin cans called ‘Bastion’, we will immediately take preventive measures to destroy them.”
“I am not saying that we should think about a new war every minute. No, I am sure that this will not happen, and I will do everything possible to prevent it. Enough of wars! However, our new conceptual strategy of development, new directions of our national ideology, and complacency from achieved successes can lead to certain stagnation… But, in any case, I must say that yes, a new era is beginning, and I am confident that it will be successful for our country,” the head of state declared.
