The representative of the president of Azerbaijan on special missions and first ambassador of Azerbaijan to the Holy See (2005-2017), Elchin Amirbeyov, recently visited the Vatican.
The diplomat granted an exclusive interview to the writer and historian Carlo Marino for “Faro di Rome” and “Eurasiaticanews”.
Oku.Az presents that interview:
– After finishing your mandate as the first ambassador of Azerbaijan to the Holy See, how do you value this experience today and what is the objective of your current visit?
– First of all, it is always nice to return to the Vatican, because it brings back unique and pleasant memories of the beginning of a process that is now developing into a living, strong and effective cooperation and interaction between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Holy See. Almost Twenty years after my first visit to the Vatican, I am pleased to recognize the significant progress and continued development of our bilateral relations. It is a special pleasure for me to see our magnificent tricolor flag flying from the Azerbaijani embassy building on the historic Via della Concorde, near the Vatican. We are pleased to have a special ambassador accredited to the Holy See residing in Rome from December 2022. As for the purpose of this visit, it is part of the ongoing active political dialogue between our states on issues of mutual interest, including issues related with the ongoing peace process between Azerbaijan and Armenia. We thank the Holy See for showing interest in this issue and for supporting the peace program presented by Azerbaijan for the normalization of relations with our Armenian neighbors. As you know, direct bilateral negotiations between our countries to conclude a peace agreement have entered the critical final stage, and the process is designed to reaffirm Azerbaijan’s firm commitment to achieving a lasting, secure and irreversible peace with Armenia. To achieve this goal, it is our sacred duty to ensure that a future peace agreement makes a return to territorial claims, aggression or military conflict absolutely impossible, even in theory. Azerbaijan has already suffered enough from this plague and wants to prevent this situation from happening again in the future. To this end, Armenia should urgently resolve the obvious territorial claims reflected in the current Constitution regarding a part of the sovereign territory of Azerbaijan. By denying the relevance of this major obstacle to peace and choosing simplistic and impractical ways to sign a poorly drafted text at all costs, Armenia appears to be ignoring the elephant in the living room and sweeping the decades-old root cause under the rug. : The long rivalry and conflict between our countries tries to destroy. So, today the ball is in Armenia’s court and we hope that the historic opportunity to turn the tragic page of our relations is not lost.
– Your country is known for its religious tolerance and the Holy See plays a role in the complex interreligious dialogue. Is there synergy between the two countries in this field?
– In fact, you are right. Religious tolerance, which I define as mutual respect between representatives of different faiths and religious denominations, their harmonious and peaceful coexistence in our country, is a characteristic sign of Azerbaijan, a source of pride for all Azerbaijanis, regardless of ethnic origin and religious. Our geostrategic position at the crossroads between East and West and our ability to embrace and support the values of both civilizations allow us to act as a living bridge between different cultures and civilizations. Due to its rich experience in this field, Azerbaijan is easily perceived as a natural platform for much-needed intercultural and interreligious dialogue and interaction by both East and West. Baku is already recognized as a major international venue for all types of high-level events, including global summits, forums and conferences, aimed at promoting and deepening dialogue between different cultures and religions. I agree that this element increases the synergy between Azerbaijan and the Holy See and can be an example for others. As a practical contribution to strengthening intercultural and interreligious dialogue, Azerbaijan has been participating in various philanthropic activities for decades, financing the implementation of a large number of projects aimed at preserving world cultural and religious heritage in different parts of the world.
– In fact, Azerbaijan is known here as an important patron and financier of the cultural and religious heritage of the Holy See thanks to the activities of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation. Can you tell us something about this aspect of bilateral cooperation, the projects that are currently on the agenda and what importance they have for your country?
– These projects are an important element of our bilateral relations and indicate the existence of deep trust and mutual respect between Azerbaijan and the Holy See, as well as between our Heads of State. Azerbaijan is proud to contribute to the preservation and preservation of the valuable cultural and religious heritage of the Catholic Church. For more than ten years, practical cooperation has been developing between the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, headed by the first vice president of Azerbaijan, Mehriban Aliyeva, the Pontifical Council for Culture of the Holy See and the Pope’s Archeology Commission. As a result of this long-term cooperation, several important Roman catacombs have been restored and made available to the public, such as the catacombs of St. Marcellus and St. Peter, considered the most important monuments of the Christian world. We can also mention the restoration of numerous sarcophagi in the catacombs of San Sebastian, monuments in the Vatican museums, as well as some artifacts in St. Peter’s Basilica, and the restoration of a large number of manuscripts in the Vatican Apostolic Library. As for current projects, we hope that the restoration work on the Comodilla catacombs will be completed by the end of the year. Finally, the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the Vatican governorate signed a new agreement here a month ago that will allow the extensive decoration of the ceiling of St. Paul’s Basilica to be restored and preserved. Of course, all these projects are extremely important for Azerbaijan, which is trying to strengthen its image as a country of harmonious existence of different cultures and religions. We are confident that this cooperation, highly appreciated by both parties, will continue successfully in the future.
