President Ilham Aliyev attends Iftar dining ceremony -UPDATE

“Our country is developing. This is already a reality. Anyone visiting Azerbaijan, Baku and the districts, if he is objective and unbiased, cannot deny this development. It makes us very happy, inspires us even more and encourages for further steps. We want to make our country even stronger,” President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev said at the iftar ceremony on the occasion of the Ramadan.

He noted Azerbaijan`s positions in the region are quite strong and the country`s influence opportunities are expanding.

“Azerbaijan has all the freedoms, the freedom of religion. The biggest asset is the freedom of religion, conscience, speech, thought, political activity and the press. All these freedoms are available in Azerbaijan. Azerbaijani people are a free people. We have gained independence, have been living as an independent country for 20 years. At the same time, the development of democracy in Azerbaijan has also come a long way. There are all the freedoms today, and the people of Azerbaijan are seeing the fruits of that,” the President said.

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“Representatives of all faiths feel comfortable in Azerbaijan. Respect for the Islamic culture and Islamic religion goes hand in hand with respect for all other religions in Azerbaijan. Someone respecting his religion should also respect others. This is already an established approach in Azerbaijan,” President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev said at the iftar party on the occasion of the Ramadan.

The Head of State expressed satisfaction that tolerance, religious tolerance are already well-established concepts in Azerbaijan and it is not a slogan, but a way of life.

“The relationship between religion and the state in Azerbaijan is well manifested through the attitude towards religious monuments. The Azerbaijani state is building and restoring not only the mosques and other Islamic sites. We are also renovating and building temples belonging to other religions. This has been mentioned here, and I am very glad that leaders of various religions have expressed a common opinion. It shows that work in this area in Azerbaijan is at a very high level. Of course, this means that there is a correct state policy, that it has a foundation, but at the same time this is a political and public order of society. This is our way of life. This is our world outlook. This is how we live and, by living so, prove to ourselves, to the region and to the world that multiculturalism does exist. Multiculturalism is a relatively new concept. In essence, it means coexistence of people of different cultures and religions. This concept has existed in Azerbaijan for centuries, it exists and is getting stronger today. The people of Azerbaijan have lived in different socio-political systems at different times. Despite this, these positive trends have always strengthened, and most importantly in the years of independence. These are the factors enhancing our successful development,” the President said.

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“Azerbaijan has become an international venue for interreligious and intercultural dialogue. This is not only due to our geographical position or the fact that representatives of different religions have lived like one family in Azerbaijan for centuries. The international authority of His Holiness Sheikh is playing a role in this,” President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev said at the iftar party on the occasion of the Ramadan.

The Head of State expressed satisfaction that esteemed Sheikh is greatly respected in the world and important steps are taken on his initiative to strengthen the interreligious dialogue both on the international arena and in the Caucasus.

“International events are held, religious leaders from neighboring regions occasionally come to Azerbaijan. I want to recall a visit by the muftis of North Caucasian republics of Russia. It was a very successful visit. This brings us even closer together, and these factors are very important to peace, stability and tolerance in the Caucasus,” he said.

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“During 20 years, Azerbaijan has demonstrated to both its own citizens and the world that we can live as an independent state, a free nation, and a clear demonstration of that is our well-being and economic indicators that have been improving from year to year,” President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev said at the iftar party on the occasion of the Ramadan.The President noted all the problems facing the country are being resolved.

“As you know, there are specific programs and execution mechanisms in every field. These programs are being implemented, our country is successfully developing. Creative and landscaping work is under way throughout the country. Major infrastructure projects are being implemented. Our districts are experiencing unprecedented revival and development. This is a reality. This has been done by us, all this work has been possible thanks to the work and talent of the Azerbaijani people and stability in the country,” he said.

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“Heydar Aliyev's policy is still living and successfully continuing in Azerbaijan in all areas today. In essence, as is the case in all other areas, the foundation of relations between religion and the state was laid in the years of our independence,” President Ilham Aliyev said at the Iftar ceremony.

The Head of State said relations between religion and the state in Azerbaijan are today at a very high level, and they can be cited as an example on a global scale.

“In the same way as all the spheres are developing in Azerbaijan, positive trends are evident in this area too. This further strengthens our country. The strength of a country is determined not only by natural or financial resources. The strength of each country is in comprehensive development. The strength of Azerbaijan lies in the fact that representatives of all nations and religions live in peace here. They live in the atmosphere of friendship and brotherhood. This is our strength. Therefore, a long-term, successful and sustainable development of our country is beyond doubt. We will only move forward successfully, solve the problems facing the country and achieve comprehensive development of Azerbaijan,” the President said.

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President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev attended an Iftar party on the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan hosted by Head of the Caucasian Muslims` Board Sheikh ul-Islam Allahshukur Pashazade at his residence on Friday.

The Iftar party was opened by Sheikh ul-Islam Allahshukur Pashazade. He thanked the Head of State for accepting his invitation to attend the event. Pashazade praised national leader Heydar Aliyev`s role in preserving religious values in Azerbaijan. He also lauded President Ilham Aliyev`s successful continuation of the national leader`s strategy, adding this allowed Azerbaijan to have become one of the important countries in the world.

Pashazade emphasized the fact Baku hosted a summit of the world`s religious leaders, world intercultural dialogue forum and other events of international importance, saying “this proves how much importance Azerbaijan attaches to preserving cultural values”.

Other speakers including Head of the Baku and Caspian Eparchy of the Russian Orthodox Church Father Alexander, head of the community of Mountain Jews Semyon Ikhiilov, ecclesiastical superior of Vatican`s "sui iuris" mission Vladimir Fekete and head of the Albanian-Udin Christian community Robert Mobili praised the level of tolerance in Azerbaijan.

Speaking to the event, President Ilham Aliyev said Iftar party had become a good tradition in Azerbaijan. He noted that started by national leader Heydar Aliyev and Sheikh ul-Islam Allahshukur Pashazade, this tradition is continued successfully today. The President praised the government-religion relations in the country, saying they were exemplary.

He said Azerbaijan is a place where representatives of different nations and religions coexist in peace and harmony. President Aliyev lauded Pashazade`s role in ensuring high-level government-religion relations. The Head of State said Azerbaijan is home to world-scale interfaith and intercultural dialogue.

He noted democratic, political and religious reforms were factors conditioning Azerbaijan`s sustainable development. On the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, President Aliyev expressed confidence the problem will be solved based on international legal norms and the principle of the country`s territorial integrity.


/AzerTAc/