By Vestnik Kavkaza
A unique book marking the 90th anniversary of the birth of Heydar Aliyev has been published thanks to the “Vestnik Kavkaza” publishing house. Its editorial board includes Professor Georgi Alekseev, Professor Aligasanov, corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences Ruslan Grinberg, Academician Sergei Karpov and corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences Yefim Pivovar. The authors are leading experts in the fields of history and political science – Gennady Bordyugov, Alexei Vlasov, Alan Kasayev and Ismail Agakishiyev.
“In the Russian translation "Heydar" means "going ahead". On the other hand, if we start from the fate of this man, he was always a leader and led the way,” Ismail Agakishiyev, Associate Professor of the History Department of Moscow State University, co-author of the book, explains the title of the book.
The research approach allowed the creative team to do research which is not only historically valuable, but also interesting and accessible to the public. “The scientific and journalistic research was done in the form of an album,” Alan Kasayev, head of the department of Moscow State Linguistic University, co-author of the book, says. “Today, people are reading less and less, and to maintain and expand the audience involving young people in it, we have made this decision: the book should be richly illustrated and beautifully framed.”
The official presentation of the book took place on May 20 at the History Department of Moscow State University. And this place was not chosen by chance, because during his life Heydar Aliyev was awarded two honorary degrees - doctor and professor of Moscow State University. Dean of the History Department, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor Sergey Karpov opened the meeting. “Heydar Aliyev played a huge role in shaping the modern Azerbaijani state. He played a huge role in the formation of the Soviet Union and its strengthening. And he played a huge role in the development of our relations, which are now progressing well, and the fruit of those relationships is this book. For the first time, many of the documents are presented, including previously unpublished ones including both photographic and archival documents. I think it's very interesting. This is a contribution to the history of our relations, as well as to our country's history - the history of the Soviet Union, Azerbaijan's history, the history of Russia.”
Rector of Moscow State University, academician Victor Sadovnichiy said: “The book, in my opinion, is a very good event, a very good work by our and Azerbaijani scientists. It is sometimes said that if Heydar Aliyev saw today’s Baku, which he always saw differently, he probably would have been very pleased. The fact that Ilham Heydar oglu, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, continues the line to strengthen the country and its prosperity is also a success for the people of Azerbaijan. I think this is a good symbol and a good event for our country - Russia. In short, I think that this book is a contribution to the unwavering friendship between the peoples of Russia and Azerbaijan.”
The presentation was attended by historians, journalists, politicians and supporters of Aliyev, but even those who knew Heydar Aliyev personally admitted that they were able to learn something new in the book for themselves.”This format is very interesting, and it is interesting to read a book, to find out some facts which are unknown even, for example, to me, a man who knows the story of Aliyev’s life quite well - the whole story evolved in my view,” Polad Bul-Bul oglu, Azerbaijani Ambassador to Russia, said. “There are even some stamps, frankly, which this book safely bypassed or even, I would say, limned them from other, more correct sides.”
In addition to the first publication of documents and previously classified materials, the reader will find in the book interviews with Shimon Peres, Leonid Kuchma, Dietrich Genscher and other prominent politicians of the 20th century who knew the national leader of Azerbaijan. “The book has the advantage that the judgements in it are not pretentious – they are appropriate to Aliyev’s personality, because the way to the triumph of historical justice which was overcome by Heydar Aliyev was not spacious and free, and this is a historical drama,” Alexander Dzasokhov, member of the Board of Trustees of the Russian Council on International Affairs, thinks.
“Indeed the book is made with love,” Yefim Pivovar, president of the Society of Friendship with Azerbaijan, rector of RSUH, agreed with Dzasokhov. “It seems to me that neither the authors nor the artist are indifferent, as well as the publisher; this affects the quantity of texts of prominent people of our time, who are assembled here and gave a description of this extraordinary man, whom, no doubt, the people of Azerbaijan are proud of, but we also have every reason to be proud that it was part of the USSR which formed this man. He made an enormous contribution to the development of our country, and a large number of members of the current elite of Azerbaijan have received education in our walls, the walls of Moscow University, first of all, and in other universities of the country. They remember it, they are proud of it, and it was a landmark for the policy of Heydar Aliyev. He paid particular attention to this.”
The authors did not attempt to rewrite history or to impose a particular point of view to the reader. They collected unique historical sources and analysis, so this book is a contribution to the study of history. “Bearing in mind what we have been taught by the History Department and Moscow State University, we cannot think in a different way,” Alexei Vlasov, Deputy Dean of the History Department of Moscow State University, stated.”Starting just from a fundamental scientific approach, we tried to design the study that is before you today. But I would add one more thing: here there are colleagues from the inner circle of Heydar Aliyev, who can bring to us in the format of an oral history the real features of his portrait. And yet, though many books are written about Heydar Aliyev, and there are a lot of documentaries about him, in my opinion, the mystery of his identity was not revealed until the end. Therefore, the book that we present in the walls of Moscow State University is our very modest contribution, an attempt to uncover some new facets of the image of this policy, given that a significant part of his life was associated with Russia.”
In addition to its scientific value, it is worth noting that the book "Going Ahead" is simply a pleasure to hold in your hand. The book is rich with original illustrations by the artist Sergei Miroshnichenko which can impress even the most sophisticated reader. The book was published with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and its President - Mrs. Mehriban Aliyeva. In the near future, the “Vestnik Kavkaza” publishing house will present an English version of the book.
