By Agha Iqrar Haroon
Shusha, Azerbaijan: The President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has said that the Western world should come out of the duality because such an approach is harming developing countries.
In his interaction with international media at the opening ceremony of the second Shusha Global Media Forum themed “Unmasking False Narratives: Confronting Disinformation” on July 20, 2024, he explained in detail how the Western world, particularly media exhibited double standards, duality, and hypocrisy in matters and developing countries such as Azerbaijan are the victims of this duality that creates false narratives and portrays victims as aggressors.
“We’ve chosen the way of independence, de facto and de jure, independent foreign policy, self-sufficient economies, fruitful cooperation with those partners who want to cooperate with us. Of course, reliance on domestic sources of potential income, in combination with strong ties in the region, allowed us to overcome most of our economic problems. We just decided to do our homework, to concentrate on our country and our people, and not pay attention to what the European Parliament or the Council of Europe said. We are absolutely indifferent to that,” said President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev.
Azerbaijan stayed in Afghanistan as a non-NATO member and fought shoulder to shoulder with the US but now an Azerbaijan Sanctions Review Act of 2024 was moved over the issue that Azerbaijan reclaimed its illegally occupied territory from Armenian aggression
In his candid but in-depth over three-hour talks with the media President Ilham Aliyev mentioned that in the 90s Azerbaijan was the victim of Armenian aggression but the United States put sanctions on Azerbaijan because a false narrative was built against Azerbaijan. He added that Azerbaijan always stands with the global cause and plays a pivotal role whenever and wherever it is needed, but it is still the victim of the duality of the Western world. He stated that Azerbaijan stayed in Afghanistan as a non-NATO member and fought shoulder to shoulder with the US and stayed in Afghanistan longer than the US itself but now an Azerbaijan Sanctions Review Act of 2024 was moved over the issue that Azerbaijan reclaimed its illegally occupied territory from Armenian aggression. It may be mentioned there were several UN Security Council resolutions stating that Armenia had illegally occupied Azerbaijani lands and Azerbaijan through a Patriotic war reclaimed the land and now is the victim of a false narrative built by the Western world, particularly the Western world.
Azerbaijan would continue to raise its voice against colonization in the 21st century because it had been a victim of colonization in the past
“As for our relations with the US, with the Republican administration, our relations have always been much more productive, fruitful, and result-oriented,” said President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev as he addressed the second Shusha Global Media Forum themed “Unmasking False Narratives: Confronting Disinformation”.
“During President Trump’s presidency, we enjoyed very fruitful cooperation based on mutual respect and appreciation of each other’s support on different tracks. Our relations with the United States were pretty stable. Despite the ups and downs, which were not initiated by us, there were just exaggerated expectations from Azerbaijan that did not materialize. There was a second attempt to influence our political life, attempts to finance political opposition,” President Ilham Aliyev added.
Pakistan and Azerbaijan enjoy a high frequency of people-to-people exchanges and both countries need to promote business-to-business relations for enhancing economic relations
His almost three-hour talk with the media was full of logical citing of how the Western world plays with the fates of developing countries and manipulates with facts and figures and it knows the art of making victims as aggressors. Talking about the illegal actions of France he stated that France is still a colonizer and is the perfect example of global hypocrisy and double standards. He stated that Azerbaijan would continue to raise its voice against colonization in the 21st century because it had been a victim of colonization in the past.
“We started actively addressing this issue after we were elected as chair of the Non-aligned Movement. This was part of our responsibility because many countries of the Non-aligned Movement suffered from colonialism in the past and suffered a lot and sacrificed millions of lives during the time of colonialism. Some countries still suffer from that. Like the Comoro Islands and Mayotte are still under colonial rule, and that was our obligation. We wanted to help these countries to get rid of this disgusting feature of the past,” the head of state emphasized.
It may be mentioned that France illegally occupies the Islands of Guadeloupe, Martinique, Saint-Martin, Saint-Barthélemy, Saint Pierre and Miquelon (Atlantic Ocean) Reunion island, Mayotte, the French Southern and Antarctic Lands (Indian Ocean) French Polynesia, New Caledonia, Wallis and Futuna (Pacific Ocean).
Responding to a question regarding the Pakistan-Azerbaijan Relationship President Ilham Aliyev was of the opinion that he has wonderful relationships with his brother Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and both Countries are working very closely. He lauded the role of Pakistani media, saying that it has always been very supportive and positive. President Ilham Aliyev said that Pakistan and Azerbaijan enjoy a high frequency of people-to-people exchanges and both countries need to promote business-to-business relations for enhancing economic relations. He reiterated Azerbaijan’s commitment to build a strong partnership with Pakistan not only on a political level but also on an economic level, trade, and investment. He said that both these countries could also explore the possibility of working together in the renewable energy sector.
“Pakistan-Azerbaijan brotherhood is based on deep feelings between our people towards each other which go back to centuries and both countries have a lot to share including strategic and military collaboration”, commented President Ilham Aliyev.
The opening ceremony of the second Shusha Global Media Forum themed “Unmasking False Narratives: Confronting Disinformation” was skillfully and candidly explained by President Ilham Aliyev who believed that Azerbaijan is a victim of fabricated, false, and treated news since ages and now Azerbaijan is indifferent to such treatment of western media that always twisted facts and do not leave any chance to develop a false narrative against Azerbaijan.
Responding to questions regarding the forthcoming COP meeting in Azerbaijan, President Ilham Aliyev said that COP is a main event on a global scale and this is the number one conference in the international arena.
“For the first time, it is going to be held in the area of the former Soviet Union and the region, and it is a unique chance for us to step into a higher league. Because we are not only organizing, we do a lot on the substance. We launch initiatives. We now actively work with developing countries in order to build bridges between the Global South and the Global North. Our advantage is that we’ve been chairing the Non-Aligned Movement for four years,” President Ilham Aliyev.
The Forum, attended by over 150 foreign guests from around 50 countries, including news agencies of 30 countries, three international organizations, and 82 media entities, provides a platform for joint discussions and actions among participants.
The forum will include four-panel sessions on “Impact assessment: scoping disinformation,” “Policies and initiatives to build a more resilient society against disinformation,” The impact of artificial intelligence on reality, media, and disinformation: Promoting media literacy,” and “Climate movement and media.” Officials, media and civil society, government officials and businessmen, representatives of international organizations, and media experts from various countries will exchange views and experiences at the panel sessions.
It is pertinent to mention that the first Shusha Global Media Forum themed “New Media in the Era of the 4th Industrial Revolution” was held on July 21-23, 2023.
Note: The article is written with additional input and photos from the state-run Azertac News Agency.
