Ismail Agakishiyev, Oleg Kusov. Exclusively for Vestnik Kavkaza
Ilham Aliyev is a representative of the generation of politicians who replaced prominent reformers of the post-Soviet epoch. The task of the reforms was super-difficult – to change the socio-economic formation, which means painful wide-scale reforms in politics and the social sphere.
Azerbaijan was lucky, as the period of weak, destructive politicians was short – till 1993, when the all-national leader Heydar Aliyev came in office. Still, he had to make great efforts to correct the fundamental mistakes of his predecessors.
Heydar’s successor, his son and student, had another task, but it was very important as well. He had to stabilize the political life in the country and build a new economy. Even though the task sounds as simple as that, some even successful politicians spend their whole lives achieving it. Ilham Aliyev needed two years for fulfillment of the task, according to experts. It's no secret that some politicians in Azerbaijan pinned their hopes on the lack of experience of the President, who was elected first time in October 2003. The skeptics who soon saw that he was a mature and highly intellectual politician joined the number of reformers and creators. But those who decided to benefit or put the interests of their clans above the state's interests had difficult times.
12 prominent officials, including the Minister of Economic Development, Farhad Aliyev, the Minister of Finances, Fikret Yusifov, the Minister of Healthcare, Ali Insanov, the president of the State Company “Azerkhimia”, Fikret Sadygov, and the former president of the Academy of Science of Azerbaijan, Eldar Salayev, were arrested and accused of plotting a state overthrow in November 2005. Ilham Aliyev was well-known as a soft and kind person, but when it concerned the interests of the state, he showed his political will and dismissed those who threatened its stability. At the same time, he has always been positively conservative. The maintenance of representatives of the generation of politicians who were appointed by Heydar Aliyev provides an internal political balance, which is a foundation of the state’s stability. It is also a tribute to the Caucasus traditions. The President avoids radical staff reshuffles, integrating young people steadily into power, trying to provide a succession. Under Ilham Aliyev, young intellectuals came to power, many of them have studied at the world's best universities. Stratification into clans passed away – this is one of the internal political results of the President’s activity.
Under Ilham Aliyev, Azerbaijan has become a significant oil state in which oil and gas resources don’t flow away irretrievably, but are turned into new buildings, beautiful houses, the infrastructure of not only the capital, but also the provinces. The President has stressed many times that oil is not a goal, but a way to reach the goal – the establishment of an independent real economy. In this process, Azerbaijan is a leader among many oil countries.
An important index of the economic prosperity of the country is its contacts with the world. Today there are four international airports in the small South Caucasus country: in Baku, in Qabala, Ganja and Zakatyly. They are not formally international, but are loaded with many flights to major world centers. Few people are surprised that in Azerbaijan, in an agricultural town in the north of the country – Qabala – there is a factory which produces pianos by the well-known Dutch trade name Beltman. It is only a small example of successful foreign investment. Today, foreign investors are glad to invest in the country’s economy. In 2013 there were $28 billion of foreign investments. Nobody would invest in an unstable or poorly-developed country.
Another favorable feature of Azerbaijan, which promotes improvement of foreign political and economic ties, is the adherence to European culture by the President Ilham Aliyev. It is easy for politicians of leading world powers to talk to the Azerbaijani leader. And it is not only about speaking English and French fluently. The President’s family has always been characterized by the fact that, even though they are educated in European traditions, they don’t forget their ethnic roots, following the best traditions of Azerbaijani culture. For example, everybody is aware of Ilham Aliyev’s attitude toward the elderly. When his father flew from Baku or returned home, he could be not welcomed by close subordinates, but his son was always there, even if he was very busy. Ilham Aliyev believed that there could be no such serious business that could overshadow attention to parents. It was a nice example for other young Azerbaijanis. The Aliyevs live for their people. This concerns the children of the President as well. They provide great social activity.
Ilham Aliyev knows the Russian world perfectly. Studying in Moscow, he studied not only the programs of one of the best universities of the country, but also learned about Russian culture. Once, Professor Marina Remeneva told a story about the level of Russian of the Azerbaijani President. She was working at home while her TV-set was on. Suddenly her professional ear heard deep and well-bred Russian speech. “I was happy to think that finally a wonderful expert of the Russian language had appeared among Russian politicians,” she said. “I looked at the screen. It was Ilham Aliyev, speaking outstanding Russian language.” Nobody is surprised if an Azerbaijani person speaks Russian very well, but many Russians speak it poorly. The President of Azerbaijan feels the nuances of the Russian language and its verity. It is a political category as well. When Russians hear a representative of a neighboring country who speaks their language perfectly and knows their culture well, they understand that he is a person who deserves a great deal of attention. Thus, the Baku branch of MSU has the Russian Philology Department. There is no philology department in other branches which are opened in former Soviet republics.
Leaders of world powers respect Ilham Aliyev as well. In 2009 US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton came to Ankara to discuss the problem of opening the Armenian-Turkish border. She also invited the President of Azerbaijan to the meeting, as she understood that a lot depends on his opinion on the issue. Ilham Aliyev didn’t come, explaining it by a clear argument: they couldn’t open borders with a state which occupied a significant part of Azerbaijani territory. He confirmed that he was ready to discuss the problem only when Armenian armed groups have left the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. The interests of his nation prevail – this is the Azerbaijani President’s motto. As a result, the Armenian-Turkish border is still closed due to Yerevan’s position on the territorial conflict.
Critics of Ilham Aliyev speak about the monarchical system which has been built in the last 20 years in Azerbaijan by the previous and the current presidents. Usually they are politically cunning, as fair and professional experts explain the situation by the fact that, before Heydar Aliyev’s return, there was a dreadful time of decay in Azerbaijan. Only a strong politician could preserve the country. But further development demands decisive and sometimes strict measures from the authorities. According to the initiative of President Aliyev, two years ago a unique social program 'Asan Hidmet' was established in the country. Centers of Asan Hidmet provide public services in a united and coordinated form. The agency was established to improve the transparency of the state bodies’ activity, providing public services at a higher level. Centers have 9 state bodies – the Ministries of Justice, Internal Affairs, the tax administration, the State Committee for Property Issues, the State Committee for Land Cartography, and the State Fund for Social Protection. All problems are solved in a short period. For example, any citizen can be issued a passport for travelling abroad in a week. If one wants to speed up the issuing, its official price is a bit higher. Certificates, documents, licenses, registration of companies are not problems anymore. It is a real struggle against corruption, rather than a declaration of one.
This provides the stable evolutionary development of the country, otherwise the country is threatened by collapse and a revolutionary situation which hurts all ordinary people. Democracy means the conditions for the development of a nation, rather than blindly copying the political structures of other states which have different historical paths. If the country moves forward without wars and shocks, increasing the living standards of its citizens, it is a democratic country, wheresoever it is situated. If its leader achieves real successes politically and economically, he is an acknowledged leader. In last year's presidential elections almost 85 percent of voters voted for Ilham Aliyev. And people realized that it was a fair vote.
