Azerbaijan is marking the Day of the Armed Forces.
The Azerbaijani Armed Forces were formed by the Azerbaijani Democratic Republic on June 26, 1918. Azerbaijan achieved significant results in creating its own armed forces in a short time. The created army repeatedly and successfully beat off the aggressive attacks of the Armenian militarists.
The Supreme Council of Azerbaijan ordered formation of the Armed Forces on October 9, 1991. The president set June 26 as the Day of the Armed Forces on May 22, 1998.
Military parades were held on June 26, 2011 in Baku in connection with the Armed Forces Day and the 20th anniversary of restoration of the country's independence and on June 26, 2013, on the occasion of the 95th anniversary of the Armed Forces Day. The parades were addressed by the supreme commander-in-chief, the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev.
Political scientist Rovshan Ibragimov, speaking with a correspondent of Vestnik Kavkaza, noted that the Day of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces is extremely important for the republic, since the army is the basis of the traditional formation of statehood and its attribute. "Today we are celebrating the 99th anniversary of the founding of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces, and next year we will celebrate its 100th anniversary - and this date is of great importance, since for any state, especially for the first democratic republic in the East, it is very important to have such traditions and institutional formation," he said in the first place.
Rovshan Ibragimov also stressed that this holiday has special significance given the fact that Azerbaijan is still in a state of war, and its territories are occupied by the Armenian Armed Forces. The political scientist added that the prestige of the army in modern Azerbaijan is extremely high. "Significant reforms have been made in terms of the formation of the Azerbaijani army, the formation of discipline and order and the provision of soldiers, and at the moment we see that Azerbaijani servicemen's fighting spirit is very high. The young people want to join the army, so there are no serious problems in this segment," the expert stressed.
A Milli Majlis deputy, political scientist Asim Mollazade, recalled that the armed forces for Azerbaijan are a symbol of the Azerbaijani independent statehood. "Today, Azerbaijan as a young state builds its defense and defense system. It is well known that Azerbaijan has been subjected to aggression, a significant part of our territory is under occupation. Therefore, for us the armed forces are, above all, the defense of our independence and the development of the Azerbaijani people. I am absolutely sure that the armed forces will be modernized and become self-sufficient for the defense of the country," he said.
He also noted the high prestige of the army among the population. "The prestige of the army is quite high. Unfortunately, almost every day there are losses among civilians and soldiers and officers in Azerbaijan as a result of aggression. Therefore, the Azerbaijani army enjoys the full support of the people and the state," Asim Mollazade summed up.
