Leader Heydar Aliyev’s memory honoured at Culture Center in Paris

The Azerbaijani Cultural Center in Paris has honoured the memory of national leader Heydar Aliyev on the eve of his passing's anniversary.

Azerbaijan's Ambassador to France, Leyla Abdullayeva, reiterated during the service that Heydar Aliyev is the founder of modern independent Azerbaijan, Caliber.Az reported citing AZERTAG.

While speaking at the center, which is part of the country's Embassy to France, the ambassador noted that the transformation of Azerbaijan into the powerful state that it is today was based on his wise and far-sighted foreign and domestic policies.

As a result of the foreign policy course laid down by Heydar Aliyev, Azerbaijan could take a worthy place on the international stage and managed to cement that. The great leader played a significant role in preserving our national and spiritual values, ensuring Azerbaijan's recognition in the international community, and raising its stature.

The diplomat highlighted that President Ilham Aliyev, who continues the political course of the great leader, has transformed Azerbaijan into one of the leading countries in the world. Azerbaijan, as the leading country in the South Caucasus region, is recognized as a reliable partner in the system of modern international relations.

Hasan Hasanov, an Azerbaijani political and state figure, diplomat, scholar, and academic, spoke about the history of Azerbaijani-French relations as well as Heydar Aliyev’s first visit to France during the event. Touching upon the former leader's meeting with then-President François Mitterrand, he recalled that he "highly appreciated Azerbaijan’s place and role in the region, its economic potential, and, most importantly, Heydar Aliyev’s authority in the international world". Hasanov further noted, that Mitterrand had ties to the USSR and knew Heydar Aliyev from the time when he worked in Moscow. He went on to emphasize that Heydar Aliyev wanted to present Azerbaijan to the world as it truly is, to convey its problems and the aggression against the country. "The main goal of such visits was to inform the international community of Azerbaijan's real situation. Our country desperately needed this. No one could have done this better or more convincingly than Heydar Aliyev", he stated.

A film portraying the life and achievements of Heydar Aliyev was presented during the event.

By Nazrin Sadigova