Azerbaijan marks National Salvation Day.

Azerbaijan acquired independence in October 1991. The first years of
independence were characterized by crisis within the country and in
the government. Chaos occupied all spheres of social life. Conditions
got tougher in the army, as the number of desertions increased.
Armenia increased its occupation day by day. Azerbaijan faced a crisis
in power. Disparate individuals and groups struggled among themselves
for power in the young republic. The National Front took over power in
the state on May 14th 1992 and showed an inability to run the state in
the first days of its poorly-managed period. In 1993 Azerbaijan faced
the danger of civil war.

In such a difficult period people invited the prominent son of
Azerbaijan, Heydar Aliyev, from Nakhchivan to Baku. Aliyev came to
Baku on June 19th, at the insistence of the people and the authorities
of the republic.

Aliyev prevented civil war in Azerbaijan in a short period of time.

Aliyev was elected the chairman of the Azerbaijani Supreme Soviet on
June 15th 1993, and this date entered our history as National
Salvation Day. The Azerbaijani Parliament declared June 15th a holiday
in June 1997 at the insistence of the people.