Author: Baghdasarian Karlen

Armenian MFA condemns Azeri subversive attempts

18:49, 03 Jan 2015

“We strongly condemn the subversive actions carried out by the
Azerbaijani Armed Forces during the night of 2nd – 3rd of January on
the Line of Contact with the Artsakh Defence Army which has resulted
in casualties. We express our deepest condolences to the families and
relatives of the killed soldiers,” the Armenian Ministry of Foreign
Affairs said in a sttement.

“With this another provocation Baku continues to implement the
continuous threats of the Azerbaijani authorities on the use of force
which are being stated even in New Year messages by the leadership of
that countr,” the statement reads.

“This is a flagrant contempt towards the appeals of the OSCE Minsk
Group Co-Chair Countries to refrain from provocative actions and
escalation of the situation, especially on the eve of and during
religious holidays.

It is long overdue for the international community to sober the
Azerbaijani authorities acting against its calls,” the Ministry said.

From: Baghdasarian

Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Jan 1 2015

A painful 2015 in Turkey can serve for a better future

The year we have left behind was the 50th anniversary of the
deportation by the Turkish government of one of the most ancient
populations of Anatolia, the Istanbul Rums. The year we entered marks
the 100th anniversary of another tragedy of another of Anatolia’s
ancient population, the Armenians.

The Greeks of Anatolia, or Rums, were first subjected to mass
migration in 1923 following an agreement over a population exchange
between Turkey and Greece at the end of the War of Independence. Most
Turks would know about it since it was based on an agreement between
two states. Then came the Sept. 6/7, 1955, Pogrom; which has also led
to additional numbers of Rums leaving the country. While old
generations would know about it, young generations are less informed
about it.

But what happened in 1964 is even less known in Turkey.

“The Turkish government, unable to interfere in Cyprus, took it out on
the Rum in Istanbul. The ‘Agreement of establishment, commerce and
navigation’ signed in 1930 between Greece and Turkey was unilaterally
annulled and the Rum who were citizens of Greece were asked to leave
immediately. But Rum of Greek nationality (the établis) and those of
Turkish nationality having been completely interrelated, some 30,000
more Rum followed the 12,000 that were originally deported. Thus the
Rum, the most ancient population of Istanbul, were for the most part
removed from their city. From this perceptive, 1964 may be seen as the
last link in a long chain of homogenization starting with the Young
Turk governments of the 20th century,” read a call for papers for an
international conference organized by Bilgi University last November.

“They were forced to leave with only 20 kilos and 20 dollars; as if
they were some tourists that came to Turkey for a visit,” said Ýlkay
Romain Örs, one of the organizers of the conference.

As is also the case with many other dark pages in our history, be it
the Armenian tragedy or the Dersim massacres of the Alevis, the
sufferings of the Rums were added to the other skeletons in the
closet.

“The 1964 migration of Rums took place rather not too long ago, yet it
is one of the least known and least studied. Oral history has not been
generous to the 1964 event and remaining Rums rather kept silent, they
did not want to attract attention,” said Romain Örs from Bilgi
University’s Department of International Relations.

The slow awakening from a sort of deep winter sleep about our past
started in the 1990s. It was the decade when important reform steps
were taken to reach European Union standards and Turkey started to
gain self-confidence, so it is no coincidence that, albeit at a slow
pace, Turks started questioning some of the most unpleasant episodes
in their history.

“The initial reaction of Turkish democrats was to approach the subject
from a nostalgic point of view. However, that eventually became a real
confrontation with the country’s past taboos. The forced migration of
Armenians and the ethnic cleansing in 1915, the forced population
exchange in 1923, the Wealth Tax in 1942 and the Istanbul Pogrom of
Sept. 6-7, 1955, were the most prevalent topics tackled. Even so,
some issues are yet to be sufficiently analyzed academically. The
deportation of Jews from Thrace in 1934, forcibly Islamized Armenians,
and the deportation of Rum in 1964 are those ones,” read the call for
papers.

The conference organized together with the Babil Association, Center
for Asia Minor Studies and the Ecumenical Federation of
Constantinopolitans, and funded by Open Society Foundation, aimed to
shed light on the sad event of 1964 and to encourage further study.

Why do we have to remember? What’s the purpose of scratching old
wounds? “Nothing stays hidden; we cannot run away from them forever
and pretend they never happened. It is better to deal with these
issues when they are still fresh in our minds. We need to learn the
lessons from our past mistakes so as to not repeat new ones.”

Remembering unpleasant things is an unpleasant and painful exercise
indeed. 2015, the 100th anniversary of the Armenian tragedy, will be a
painful year in this respect, but it will be a healthy exercise for a
better and peaceful societal mindset.

January/01/2015

From: Baghdasarian

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Jan 3 2015

Skirmish in Nagorno-Karabakh conflict results in losses

3 January 2015 – 1:21pm

It has been reported by the Ministry of Defense of Armenia that last
night a skirmish took place on the front line. Two Armenian soldiers
were killed, one was wounded.
Armenian soldiers Karen Grigoryan and Vardan Lazarian were killed,
Volodya Gagik Arutyunyan was wounded.

From: Baghdasarian

YEREVAN
The writer Adalian Norair bitten by a dozen stray dogs in the center of Yerevan

January 1 at 11:30 on the Republic Square in Yerevan, a dozen stray
dogs attacked the writer and scientist known Norair Adalian. “The
first-January, when I went to visit friends, I sat 5 minutes on the
bench near the giant Christmas tree in the Republic Square where a
dozen dogs rushed at me. One of them bit me on the left and walk
backwards I fell to the ground, ” explained Norair Adalian that took
the lives -dit-il- saved only by the arrival of two men.”Without them
they would have eaten me, ” he has said. Taken to hospital, he was
treated and a cast on his right arm broken in the fall. Norair Adalian
angry against the city authorities ask these last to seriously deal
with stray dogs that roam in packs in the center of the Armenian
capital.

Krikor Amirzayan

Saturday, January 3, 2015,
Krikor Amirzayan © armenews.com

From: Baghdasarian

France: Law of Armenian genocide denial, Ankara’s influence

The Nouvelles d’Arménie magazine of January 2015 reveals a collusion
between a member of the French Constitutional Council and a Turkish
personality at the time of the examination of the Boyer Law in 2012 to
criminalize denial of the Armenian genocide. The magazine of the
Armenian community in France title on the cover page: “Constitutional
Council: The dangerous connections of Hubert Haenel.” Hubert Haenel,
72, is a former Senator (UMP) appointed to the CC in 2010. He is also
a member of the Bosphorus Institute, a pro-Turkish lobby in France.

While everyone agrees that the Constitutional Council is an impartial
institution, the Nouvelles d’Arménie proves otherwise. In fact a few
days after the positive vote of the French Senate adopted the law
criminalizing the Armenian Genocide protest on 23 January 2012, a
pro-Turkish lobby was formed to apply for arbitration of CC. So, on
February 1st 2012, in a Yahoo discussion group, we discovered an
e-mail correspondence between Hubert Haenel and Yasar Yakis an
anti-Armenian Turkish, former Minister of Foreign affairs .

These exchanges bring into light some collusion between the two men to
obstruct the Boyer law. For example, on first February 2012, Yasar
Yakis written to Haenel (11:12 AM): «Dear and great friend, […] I
could not help but share my joy with great friends of Turkey. I think
this resort has definitely changed the direction of the tide […] The
case is now in your good hands.” The same day, at 3:41 PM, Hubert
Haenel replied: « Like you, I share this relief. We have 30 days to
decide, the die is cast.”

On February 28, 2012 (2:23 PM), Haenel wrote Yakis: «The decision of
the Constitutional Council will be public today at 5:00 PM. You will
be satisfied.” And Yasar Yakis answers the same day at 2:58 PM: « As
it’s you who say, I do not think I’ll be disappointed ”

On February 28, 2012, Valerie Boyer’s law was repealed.

These conversations are always on the internet for almost 2 years.
They were not denied by the applicants. The question remains on the
legality of the decision of the French Constitutional Council.

Jean Eckian/ Paris

From: Baghdasarian

REVUE DE PRESSE
>

Professeur à l’université de Yale, Jay Winter est spécialiste de la
première guerre mondiale. Il est associé à la naissance du Centre
international de recherche de l’Historial de la Grande Guerre à
Péronne (Somme), qui consacre ses travaux à l’histoire culturelle de
la guerre de 1914-1918.

Il est l’auteur de plusieurs ouvrages de référence, dont celui publié
en codirection avec Annette Becker et intitulé The Cambridge History
of the First World War (simultanément chez Cambridge University Press
et, en fran̤ais, chez Fayard La Premi̬re Guerre mondiale Рtome 1 :
Combats, octobre 2013), premier livre d’histoire globale sur le sujet,
suivi des tomes 2 et 3, respectivement sur les Etats (936 pages, 36
euros) et sur les sociétés civiles, à paraître, le 10 novembre 2014
(912 pages, 37 euros).

Le monde se fait la guerre pendant plus de quatre ans. Les Etats
signent la paix en 1919-1920 en se disant >. Pourquoi
n’arrive-t-on pas à sceller une paix durable ?

De nombreuses raisons expliquent que la paix n’ait pas tenu. La
première tient à l’exclusion de l’Allemagne et de la Russie de la
toute récente Société des nations (SDN), ainsi qu’à la
non-participation des Etats-Unis. La deuxième est due à l’erreur qu’a
constitué le fait d’exiger de l’Allemagne des réparations de guerre de
nature punitive, ce qui a entraîné la déstabilisation de la République
de Weimar et rendu inévitable une révision du traité de Versailles. La
troisième résulte de l’incapacité à mettre en place une structure de
stabilisation économique à l’échelle de toute l’Europe ; c’est cette
erreur qui explique que l’affaiblissement de l’économie européenne ait
dégénéré en une crise mondiale après l’effondrement des marchés
boursiers en 1929. C’est à partir de ce krach que les nazis sont
devenus une force politique crédible et que leur poids électoral s’est
spectaculairement renforcé. Le chemin qui a conduit Hitler au pouvoir
passait par cette crise mondiale.

Lire : Noël fraternel dans les tranchées Rassemblement organisé par
les indépendants et les communistes pour protester contre le Traité de
Versailles, à Berlin, le 3 août 1919.

Au milieu des années 1920, les politiques, les intellectuels, les
opinions publiques considèrent-ils que les traités de 1919 à 1923 sont
une réussite ou un échec ? Autrement dit, qui, et à partir de quand,
commence à estimer que la paix a échoué ?

A la fin de la guerre, la Turquie se trouva dans le camp des vaincus.
Les termes du traité de Sèvres étaient durs. Ils confiaient à la
Grande-Bretagne, à la France, à l’Italie et à la Grèce le soin d’> certaines parties de la Turquie européenne et de
l’Anatolie. Pendant quatre ans, Mustafa Kemal ou Atatürk (>) s’employa à rassembler les débris de l’ancienne
armée ottomane et réussit à en faire une force combattante
suffisamment puissante pour chasser les forces d’occupation alliées.

Signé en 1923 en remplacement du traité de Sèvres (1920), le traité de
Lausanne prit acte de la nouvelle situation sur le terrain et, au
terme de négociations directes, autorisa la Turquie et la Grèce à
procéder à un > par lequel plusieurs millions
de Grecs d’Anatolie émigrèrent en Grèce et en Bulgarie, tandis que
plusieurs millions de musulmans originaires des Balkans rejoignirent
la nouvelle République turque. Le nettoyage ethnique se trouvait
légitimé par le droit international. La nouvelle nation turque en
sortit ethniquement plus unifiée et moins tiraillée par ses minorités
grecque et arménienne que ne l’avait été l’Empire ottoman. L’Etat turc
moderne est donc directement issu du génocide des Arméniens perpétré
en 1915-1916 et des victoires militaires d’après-guerre remportées par
l’armée turque sous le commandement d’Atatürk. La défaite de l’Empire
ottoman donna naissance à la République turque. Il est donc clair que
le traité de Sèvres de 1920 s’était soldé par un échec.

Par ailleurs, la création des nouveaux Etats qu’étaient la Pologne,
l’Autriche, la Hongrie et la Yougoslavie a suscité des conflits
incessants au sujet des frontières nouvellement établies de ces
différents pays. Notamment pour la Hongrie, qui perdait les deux tiers
du territoire qu’elle occupait avant la guerre et où le traité de
Trianon a mécontenté l’ensemble de la population du pays. Bref, la
paix est un échec et, dès le milieu des années 1920, elle fut
considérée comme telle dans la plupart des régions européennes.

En savoir plus sur

samedi 3 janvier 2015,
Stéphane (c)armenews.com

From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIE
Le Dr Hayk Demoyan a pris part à la Conférence internationale > à Berlin

Le 17 Décembre, Hayk Demoyan, le directeur de l’AGMI, et secrétaire
d’État de la Commission sur la coordination des événements dédiés au
100e anniversaire du génocide arménien a pris part à la Conférence
internationale > à Berlin.

Il y avait une table-ronde spéciale dédiée au génocide arménien
intitulée
From: Baghdasarian

Play tells story of Armenian Genocide

By Wayne Grady, Kingston Whig-Standard
Monday, December 22, 2014 8:14:55 EST PM

Playwright Devon Jackson, who has written a one-act play about the
Armenian Genocide. (Akhil Dua)

A few weeks ago I saw Nameless, a mesmerizing one-act play performed
at the Rotunda Theatre, on the Queen’s University campus. Written by
Devon Jackson, a fourth-year student at Queen’s, it is a recounting,
in some cases a re-enactment, of the atrocities committed by the
Ottoman Turks against the Armenians 100 years ago. Nearly 1.5 million
Armenians were exterminated between 1915 and the end of the First
World War, a carefully planned and executed massacre that, in 1943,
inspired Jewish lawyer Raphael Lemkin to coin the word “genocide” to
describe what had happened.

Jackson wrote the play, he says, because he hadn’t heard of the
Armenian Genocide until he stumbled upon the music of Zulal, a group
of Armenian singers, and began reading about their background.

“Something in the women’s songs touched me,” he says, “and through
writing I realized that the stories of the Armenian Genocide were
human stories, part of our collective history as human beings.”

Few of Jackson’s contemporaries at Queen’s knew of the genocide,
either, despite the fact that there are more than 50,000 Armenians
living in Canada, most of them in Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa. Some
of Canada’s best-known cultural figures have been Armenian: the
children’s singer Raffi; the photographer Yousef Karsh; filmmaker Atom
Egoyan. Theatre critic and poet Keith Garebian, who has a PhD from
Queen’s and whose father was Armenian, grew up not speaking Armenian
and knowing little about his family’s history.

“I was exogenous to Armenia,” he writes in his memoir, Pain: Journeys
Around my Parents, “having grown up ignorant of my father’s origins
and language.”

In Nameless, stories of the genocide are told partly through the
experiences of the four characters — like Zulal, all women, since few
men survived the genocide — and partly through a kind of nonfiction
narration of the massacre as an historical event. Tolstoy employs the
same interplay of fiction and history in War and Peace; so does John
Steinbeck in Grapes of Wrath. Jackson is in good company.

Our apparent mass amnesia of history is dangerous, symptomatic of what
Quebec novelist Louis Hamelin calls our obsession with the present at
the expense of the past. In his new book, Fabrications, Hamelin
worries that the October Crisis of 1970 will fall victim to the
current trend towards forgetting or even revising history. The October
Crisis, he writes, “exists outside of the moment, and is therefore
threatened by our mania for presentism and the conventional treatment
of history that reduces significant events to a simple compilation of
actors and dates.”

Jackson, who for a time was taking a double major in drama and
history, says that it was the conventional treatment of history that
made him focus more specifically on drama.

“Whenever I sat in a history class to be lectured at about the dates
and details of various battles, I’d find myself wondering what the
people in those battles had been doing three minutes before. I wanted
to know their stories.”

As Prime Minister Harper has recently pointed out, we’re in the middle
of a five-year period, 2012 to 2017, that spans several important
historical events: the War of 1812, the beginning of the First World
War (1914), the 200th anniversary of the birth of Sir John A.
Macdonald (Jan. 11, 2015), and the 150th anniversary of Confederation
(July 1, 2017). No mention of the Armenian Genocide. The danger of
forgetting or denying historical events is that it opens the door to
someone rewriting what actually happened to tell a different story.
It’s called revisionist history, and it feeds on our collective
amnesia.

In their book about the current government’s attempt to rewrite
Canadian history, Warrior Nation: Rebranding Canada in an Age of
Anxiety, Kingston writers Ian McKay and Jamie Swift suggest that the
Harper government is actively downplaying Canada’s reputation as a
peacekeeping nation and rebranding Canada as a fiercely militarist
force, no doubt to smooth the transition of the role of Canadian
troops in places like Afghanistan. Two years ago, for example, the War
of 1812 was depicted in government ads as a “seminal” moment in
Canadian history, when Canadians repelled an “invasion” by American
armed forces and “won” the war.

As McKay and Swift point out, the War of 1812 was not a watershed
moment in Canadian history: there was no “Canada” in 1812; the war was
between Britain and America, and some of it just happened to have been
fought on British soil north of the Great Lakes. Other parts were
fought on the Russian steppes. And neither side won.

We’ll be seeing similarly air-brushed portraits of Sir John A. in
2015. Heritage Canada has pumped millions of dollars into
manufacturing an image of Macdonald and the First World War that will
determine what many future Canadians will know about their own
history.

Fortunately, in all the hoopla over Macdonald’s bicentennial, an
effort is being made to include other voices with longer memories:
Metis and First Nations peoples, for example, who were shunted aside
in order to ensure that the railroad, not unlike a certain oil
pipeline, would snake its undisputed way to the West Coast. Last
month, Metis artist David Garneau spoke at Queen’s University’s
“Critical Reflections on Sir John A. Macdonald” symposium, and on Jan.
10, Kingston’s Macdonald Commission has James Daschuk, author of
Clearing the Plains, as part of a panel discussion about Sir John A.
to be held in Kingston Frontenac Public Library’s central branch.

Devon Jackson’s play is part of a wider movement to ensure that our
collective amnesia is corrected. Because when we forget history, we
aren’t merely condemned to relive it, we are condemned to relive
someone else’s version of it. Whether it’s a genocide that took place
in another country a hundred years ago, or a revolution that took
place in Canada 45 years ago, we should all be concerned about any
attempt to deny or re-write our past in order to make history appear
to justify a government’s own social or political agenda.

As Devon puts it, “It’s one thing to know that something happened, but
another to know what happened.”

Wayne Grady is a Kingston writer whose novel Emancipation Day has
recently appeared in paperback.

From: Baghdasarian

Some Egypt Armenians welcome in New Year at church

17:05, 02.01.2015

Numerous members of the Armenian community in Egypt welcome in the New
Year at the St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Church in capital
city Cairo.

Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) Egypt Chapter Honorary
Chairman Berdj Terzian told Armenian News-NEWS.am that the Armenians
living in Egypt celebrate the New Year as usual, and they have no
respective special customs.

“We [, Egyptian Armenians,] celebrate the New Year in two ways: in the
association and among family. Armenians gather at the association;
there is a huge [New Year] event, during which all kinds of songs and
music are performed.

“There are people who prefer to celebrate [the New Year] at home; of
course, by keeping all the traditions. They prepare our traditional
Armenian food.

“There are also Armenians who welcome in the New Year at the church,”
Terzian said.

In his words, between 4,000 and 5,000 Armenians live in Egypt today,
and the majority of them are the descendants of the Armenian Genocide
survivors.

“There are also Armenians who have come from Armenia and Syria several
years ago, but they are very small in number,” Berdj Terzian added.

Armenia News – NEWS.am

From: Baghdasarian

President addresses world Azerbaijanis

Fri 02 January 2015 11:12 GMT | 11:12 Local Time

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev congratulated world Azerbaijanis
on Solidarity Day and New Year.

The president’s message reads as follows:

`Dear ladies and gentlemen!

My fellow countrymen!

2014 is being left in the past. 2014 was a successful year for our
country. We have successfully completed all the tasks facing the
country, provided for a dynamic development of our country and further
strengthened our international position. Azerbaijan is recognized
worldwide as a reliable partner and our influence opportunities are
expanding.

As you know, in 2012-2013 Azerbaijan was represented in the world’s
most influential organization, the UN Security Council. We won this
right with the support of 155 countries. And this year Azerbaijan
chaired the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, making a
valuable contribution to the development of democracy and protection
of human rights in Europe.

We have established equitable relations with all countries and have
good cooperation with neighboring and all other countries. Our
bilateral relations are developing. At the same time, Azerbaijan is
playing a positive role in the multilateral format. In particular,
Azerbaijan’s role in regional development is also undeniable. Not a
single project can be implemented in the region without the
participation of Azerbaijan ` be it political, economic, energy or any
other.

In 2014 economic development was ensured. This is also very important
because, as you know, the world is still undergoing a financial and
economic crisis. Despite all this, the Azerbaijani economy is
developing successfully, and this development is underpinned by our
reforms. It is no coincidence that the world’s most influential
economic structure, the Davos World Economic Forum, ranks Azerbaijan
in 38th place in terms of competitiveness. This is a great and
historic achievement.

The development of the non-oil sector remains a priority for us. I am
glad that this year our non-oil sector grew by almost 7 per cent.
Investments worth $27 billion were made in the country’s economy. This
is also a very important event because there is a struggle for the
attraction of investment in the world. In Azerbaijan, investments are
at a high level. I am sure that it will also be the case next year.

The rate of poverty and unemployment is 5 per cent. This is a great
indicator on a global scale. The foreign debt accounts for only 8 per
cent of our gross domestic product. This is also a unique indicator.
The macroeconomic situation is stable. Our foreign exchange reserves
exceed $50 billion. The rate of the manat remains stable.

You are well aware that due to the decline in oil prices in the world,
including our region, certain tensions are being experienced.
Azerbaijan is an island of stability, a model country. Our country
provides and will continue to provide both political and economic
stability. The Azerbaijani people will live in safety, and the
well-being of our people will improve every year. The social policy
has always been the main objective for us. This year, we invested
heavily in the creation of the social infrastructure in Azerbaijan,
built and repaired more than 60 medical institutions, 50 schools and
kindergartens. I am sure that these positive developments will be
continued next year as well.

In Azerbaijan, inflation is 1.4 per cent, and the growth of population
incomes is about 5 per cent. The yearly increase of wages, pensions
and social benefits, of course, improves the well-being of the people.

We are successfully addressing the problems of the internally
displaced people ` our compatriots who are in the most difficult
situation. Every year more than 20,000 persons are provided with new
homes. This year major funds were allocated for this purpose. We are
gradually resolving this issue as well.

But unfortunately the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over
Nagorno-Karabakh has not been resolved this year either. The reason
for this is the criminal and bloodthirsty regime of Armenia. Armenia
does not want peace. All of its efforts are aimed either at not
holding the negotiations or at conducting them for the sake of
imitation. This year the mediators were more active – we have to
acknowledge that. The leaders of Russia, USA and France held
consecutive trilateral meetings in August, September and October. I
appreciate that and am grateful to these countries. However, Armenia
acted insincerely at these meetings. Moreover, less than two weeks
after the Paris meeting it began a large-scale military exercise on
occupied territories. The exercises pursued only one goal – to provoke
Azerbaijan, to commit an act of sabotage and undermine the process of
negotiations. We observed the same in the summer months when Armenian
sabotage groups attacked Azerbaijani positions. But the Azerbaijani
army gave them a fitting rebuff, killing more than 50 occupants.
Similar events took place at the end of this year. And again, the
Azerbaijani army gave an adequate response to the enemy. The occupying
state should know that a strong Azerbaijani army may restore the
territorial integrity of our country at any time. We still hope that
the negotiating process can produce a positive result, and there are
many factors enhancing this hope. We have political power, economic
potential and a powerful army. Next year, about $5 billion will be
spent on the development of our army, twice the total budget of the
impoverished Armenia.

The Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh can be
resolved only on the basis of norms and principles of international
law. UN Security Council resolutions must be implemented. The
occupying forces must withdraw from the occupied Azerbaijani lands and
the territorial integrity of our country must be restored. These are
the basic principles. On the basis of these principles we are ready to
sign any agreement.

This year was declared the “Year of Industry” in Azerbaijan. As you
know, our industrial capacity increases with every year. Azerbaijan
has made tremendous progress in this area, and the work done in this
area this year is no exception. Thus, this year we opened more than
230 new industrial enterprises, which had a positive effect on the
elimination of unemployment and the development of our export
potential. We are already providing ourselves with basic food
commodities. We want to see a similar picture on the market of
building materials, and we are getting closer to achieving this goal.
As you know, this is the essence and the main objective of the state
program on the socioeconomic development of regions.

At the same time, Azerbaijan has made significant investments in high
technology, and this year became memorable in this regard. This year
Azerbaijan acquired its second satellite. In November this satellite
was handed over to Azerbaijan. So we have two satellites now:
“Azerspace” and “Azersky”. What makes “Azersky” special ` only 20
countries in the world have such a satellite today ` is that it
observes the earth with high precision. Thus, we are fully providing
for Azerbaijan’s national interests, our security-related interests.
At the same time, we are developing our space industry.

Serious fight is waged against corruption and bribery. A special role
in this area belongs to the `ASAN xidmÉ’t’ service. We have already
created seven centers. 3.5 million applications have been made to
these centers. `ASAN xidmÉ’t’ plays a special role in the field of
public services and in the fight against corruption and bribery. If we
consider that this service was established only two years ago, we can
see how much progress we have achieved. Serious fight against
corruption and bribery will be waged in the future. We will apply
penalties, administrative measures and systemic actions.

Azerbaijan is known worldwide as a center of multiculturalism. This
year I signed an executive order on the establishment of the
international centre for multiculturalism. Azerbaijan’s unique role is
widely appreciated in the world. Azerbaijan is a bridge between
civilizations. From geographic, politically and all other points of
view, Azerbaijan is a unique country. Our experience is being studied.
I am sure that if Azerbaijan’s experience is applied in other
countries, inter-religious and inter-ethnic issues there will also be
addressed in a healthy manner.

On 20 September of this year, we celebrated the 20th anniversary of
the “Contract of the Century”. It is quite symbolic that on 20
September 2014 we laid the foundation for the Southern Gas Corridor.
The Southern Gas Corridor is the largest infrastructure project in
Europe. Azerbaijan has once again demonstrated its leadership
qualities in the implementation of this giant transnational project.
It is thanks to energy policy Azerbaijan has pursued over the years
and our strong policy that this major project is already being
implemented. `Shah Deniz-2′, TANAP and TAP are unique and
irreplaceable projects for Azerbaijan. For years and decades they will
ensure our national economic and political interests. As in the area
of international cooperation, Azerbaijan took the lead in this
project, and we will fulfill this mission with dignity.

Dear friends, it is the Day of Solidarity of Azerbaijanis of the World
today. I am sure that all Azerbaijanis of the world are rightly proud
of the fact that there is a strong and independent state of Azerbaijan
today. Independence is the greatest asset and treasure for us. We have
been independent and pursuing an independent policy for 23 years. This
independent policy is based on national interests and national values.
It provides for the current realities of Azerbaijan. Today, Azerbaijan
is a dynamic and rapidly developing country. Azerbaijan is a country
that successfully goes down the path of democracy, freedom,
independence, progress and development. I am sure that all
Azerbaijanis of the world are proud that there is a country such as
Azerbaijan on the world map, a country that speaks and will speak its
word. Our successful development will be provided in the future.

I heartily congratulate all Azerbaijanis on the Day of Solidarity of
Azerbaijanis of the World and the New Year holidays. I wish every
Azerbaijani family happiness, prosperity and continued successes.

Happy Holidays!’

From: Baghdasarian