President Aliyev highlights Azerbaijan's unique role as Russia and Türkiye's ally Interview with Dmitry Kiselev / VIDEO

On December 17, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev engaged in an exclusive interview with Dmitry Kiselev, the renowned Director General of Rossiya Segodnya International News Agency and host of the widely-followed Vesti Nedeli program on Russia’s Rossiya-1 channel.

The interview, conducted for the All-Russia State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company and RIA Novosti, comes at a time of heightened international attention on Azerbaijan’s regional policies and strategic decisions, Caliber.Az reports via Azertag.

During the interview, President Aliyev expressed the strong, longstanding partnership between Azerbaijan and Russia, stating, “Today, Russia and Azerbaijan are two reliable partners, and I think that there is no doubt about this in Azerbaijan or Russia.”

The Azerbaijani leader continued, reflecting on the historical resilience of the bilateral relationship, “As I have already said, in difficult times for our countries we have always demonstrated understanding of the situation and acted in a friendly manner. I am confident that this will continue to be the case. Of course, we keep on finding new areas for trade and economic cooperation.”

Highlighting Azerbaijan’s independent foreign policy, President Aliyev noted, “Due to the peculiarities of foreign policy, Azerbaijan, a country pursuing an independent foreign policy, is perceived as an absolutely independent player both in the West and in the East.”

He underscored the unique geopolitical position of Azerbaijan, stating, “Also due to the fact that it is the only country that is an ally of Russia and, at the same time, an ally of Türkiye, a NATO member. There is no other such country in the world.”

The president also spoke on the growing military cooperation between Azerbaijan and Türkiye, emphasizing the significance of their joint exercises: “We and Türkiye annually conduct more than 10 joint exercises – half in Azerbaijan and half in Türkiye. In fact, we have achieved a high degree of operability of military operations. Of course, this is an important factor for stability in the Caucasus.”

As the world navigates a shifting geopolitical landscape, President Aliyev reflected on the evolving global realities: “Because today's world, and the way events are unfolding, is further evidence that the world has changed dramatically. The realities that were created, and the rules of the game defined by the results of World War II, no longer work. Even global actors are not hiding this.”

Furthermore, President Ilham Aliyev touched upon Western Azerbaijanis expelled from Armenia, saying that the Azerbaijani community, consisting of about 300,000 people who were natives of Armenia and deported in the late 1980s and early 1990s, has officially applied to the Armenian leadership, requesting conditions for their return and reintegration.

“Because the fact that they were deported from there in the early 1990s does not mean that they have no right to return. Therefore, we are still waiting for a response from the Armenian leadership on how they envision the reintegration of Azerbaijanis into their historical lands,” the president added.

Moving ahead with comments on Macron's regime, Aliyev said: “What is there to be said about New Caledonia if here, right in the center of Europe, in Corsica, they [France - ed] ban the Corsican language, the Corsican language cannot be used in public places? What is this, after all? Is this democracy? Are these human rights?”

“In other words, France may have once been a great country, a country of great thinkers, great scientists, and writers. But that is no longer the case. The Macron regime is essentially turning France into a failed state,” the Azerbaijani leaders added. 

By Khagan Isayev