Tokyo, 15 June, /AJMEDIA/
33 years have passed since June 15, 1993, which was written in our history as National Salvation Day. This is not just a calendar holiday for the Azerbaijani people, but a day of great historical significance. With the return to power of the Great Leader Heydar Aliyev, Azerbaijan escaped from a deep socio-political and economic crisis, and the unshakable foundations of development were laid.
The Azerbaijani people have been celebrating National Salvation Day for five years now, as a victorious nation, with high morale and a sense of national pride. Under the leadership of the victorious Supreme Commander-in-Chief, President Ilham Aliyev, our brave Army put an end to the 30-year occupation in 44 days. As a result of successful anti-terrorist measures, the sovereignty of our country was fully ensured.
Against the background of the new realities that have emerged, the departure of Russian peacekeepers from Karabakh and the liberation of four villages of Gazakh are effective results of a well-thought-out policy. Currently, the process of delimitation and demarcation of the Azerbaijani-Armenian borders has begun. The magnificent Victory and other great successes we gained in the forty-four-day Patriotic War began precisely on the National Salvation Day.
The greatest desire of the Great Leader was to see Karabakh free and Azerbaijan whole. These words spoken with great confidence and foresight by the National Leader Heydar Aliyev during one of his meetings with internally displaced persons come to mind: “I wish that we would go to Shusha with you. We will go, believe me, we will go. Shusha is the eye of Azerbaijan, a source of pride for every Azerbaijani. Shusha is a symbol of our culture and history. Shusha is dear to everyone. But not only Shusha, the Lachin Mountains are also dear. We can never live without Lachin. A beautiful city like Agdam, Fuzuli, Jabrayil, Zangilan, Gubadli, those springs of Kalbajar, that warm water of Kalbajar – we cannot live without them.”
The dreams of the Great Leader came true after 27 years, President Ilham Aliyev fulfilled his father’s will. Indeed, today the soul of our National Leader is happy: our liberated lands are being restored, life is returning to Karabakh.
AJMEDIA takes a brief look at the glorious path that began on June 15, 1993 – National Salvation Day, and brought Azerbaijan historical successes, dynamic development, and glorious Victory.
Heydar Aliyev’s return to power in Azerbaijan on June 15, 1993 is a fateful event, a glorious page of pride in our statehood history. This historic day is also characterized by the fact that Azerbaijan escaped from decline and embarked on the path of progress, was recognized as a state pursuing an independent policy on a global scale, and took its rightful place in the international community. The name of the National Leader Heydar Aliyev, who returned to power at the call of the people, was written in history as the savior and guarantor of our independence.
Azerbaijan, which restored its state independence at the end of the 20th century, was faced with great dangers – the threat of disintegration, destruction, and erasure from the political map of the world. In June 1993, the crisis of power in the country reached its peak, chaos and anarchy were dragging Azerbaijan into the abyss. The conflict, which had escalated to the level of a civil war, directly targeted not only our state independence, but even our national existence. The years 1991-1993 are remembered in the modern history of our country as a period of chaos, arbitrariness, and adventurous experiments. The then government, unable to assess events correctly and getting involved in armchair fights, was losing its authority among the population day by day, and the government crisis was deepening.
A general opinion emerged in society that the only person capable of getting the country out of this difficult situation was Heydar Aliyev. Our people were insistently inviting their genius son to power. On June 9, 1993, the Great Leader Heydar Aliyev, responding to the call of the people, came to Baku from Nakhchivan and a few days later took over the reins of power. This was, in the truest sense of the word, a turning point in the fate of our country.
The Great Leader characterized the situation in the first years of our independence as follows: “Azerbaijan was facing a great danger. Because both the internal forces that opposed the independent existence of Azerbaijan were strong, and the complete independence of a country like Azerbaijan, which has great geographical and strategic importance and rich natural resources, did not satisfy some circles in other countries. Armenia’s aggression against Azerbaijan and the resulting weakening and defeat of Azerbaijan, as well as the internal power struggle, ousted the forces that came to power in June 1992 from power a year later, and the people themselves ousted them.”
Taking on the mission of salvation, Heydar Aliyev not only saved Azerbaijan from real dangers, but also determined the future development strategy and took the first important steps in this direction. As a result of his intense activity and efforts, socio-political stability was established in the country, illegal armed groups, which were a source of great danger, were neutralized, and reforms were launched that paved the way for socio-economic revival. As a result of this policy, calculated for the future, for concrete results, it was also possible to stop the ongoing aggression of the Armenian armed forces against our lands.
Heydar Aliyev, who was elected Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Azerbaijan on June 15, said: “My life and activities will be dedicated solely and exclusively to preserving the independence of Azerbaijan and getting our country out of this difficult situation.” To solve the problems, the National Leader directed all his efforts, first of all, to ensuring civil solidarity and stability in the country, and he achieved this, and began to create solid foundations for future development. The first important step taken in this direction was the signing of the “Contract of the Century” in September 1994. In the subsequent period, under the initiative and leadership of the Great Leader, the construction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan, Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum oil and gas pipelines began. During the reign of President Ilham Aliyev, the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway connecting Asia with Europe and the Southern Gas Corridor delivering Azerbaijani gas to Europe were added to these transnational projects.
In November 1995, a new Constitution was adopted, which formed the foundation of a democratic, legal state. At the same time, the formation of a normative-legal basis for the implementation of necessary reforms was launched. Without going into details, it can be said that Liberation Day is the day when the foundation was laid for Azerbaijan to escape from chaos, anarchy, chaos, arbitrariness, and the threat of disintegration and gain stability, peace, and development, and the fate of our country changed.
Great Leader Heydar Aliyev, who ensured the confident development of Azerbaijan as an independent state and successfully overcome the most difficult trials of history, played the role of a savior and founding leader in the true sense of the word. It can be said without exaggeration that independent Azerbaijan is the masterpiece of the National Leader Heydar Aliyev. The day when the foundation stone of this work was laid – June 15 – is one of the brightest pages of our history.
One of the most important services of the National Leader to our people and statehood is to raise a worthy successor who will ensure Azerbaijan’s confident progress on the path of progress in the future. As a result of the wise policy of President Ilham Aliyev, who successfully implemented the ideas of the Great Leader, our country is developing dynamically, occupies a worthy place in the world political arena, and our national interests are resolutely protected at all levels. Azerbaijan is known as a powerful country with its own principled position and pursuing an independent policy.
In recent years, Azerbaijan has gone through a great development path in the light of Heydar Aliyev’s ideas, and our dreams and aspirations have become reality. Today’s Azerbaijan is the free, independent, territorial integrity and sovereignty-secured country that the Great Leader wanted to see. The Azerbaijani Armed Forces are among the 50 most powerful armies in the world, surpassing the armies of many countries in terms of technical equipment. The Patriotic War of Azerbaijan, especially the unique Shusha operation, is being studied in the military schools of the world’s leading countries.
Our Victory in the Patriotic War has created new realities in the region. Many countries and power centers of the world accept these realities and reckon with them. Azerbaijan dictates the agenda of the post-war period. President Ilham Aliyev demonstrates boundless determination and perseverance in the construction work. In parallel with the necessary infrastructure facilities in the territories liberated from occupation, residential complexes are also being built and put into operation, and the foundations of new ones are being laid. So far, hundreds of families have returned to their homeland, and it is planned to resettle 140 thousand people in the liberated territories in the next three years. The magnificent reconstruction and construction work carried out in the liberated lands is based on Heydar Aliyev’s ideas and development strategy.
Our people are confident that Azerbaijan, the leading state of the South Caucasus region, will continue to achieve great successes in the future and increase its power even more. Because our country has a President like Ilham Aliyev who is resolute, has a strong political will, and defends the interests of his people and state with determination and courage.
The peak of the history of Azerbaijan, Heydar Aliyev, is becoming more and more apparent as the years go by. Our appreciative people always remember with gratitude the unparalleled services of their eldest son. Heydar Aliyev’s ideas are leading Azerbaijan from peak to peak, from victory to victory.
Vugar Aghayev
