On 31 October 2003, 41-year-old Ilham Aliyev formally succeeded his ailing father as president of the oil-rich Caspian republic of Azerbaijan. While taking the oath on the Koran and Azerbaijan's Constitution, Aliyev pledged to bring his country "peace, order, progress, stability, and economic prosperity" and to pursue a path toward democratic reforms. While Aliyev's first year in power has brought some positive changes, he seems unable -- or unwilling -- to make a clean break with his father's controversial legacy.
Baku/Prague, 23 October (RFE/RL) -- A court in Azerbaijan yesterday sentenced seven opposition leaders to prison sentences of between 2 1/2 and five years, RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service reported.
The marathon trial of seven Azerbaijani opposition leaders imprisoned after last year's presidential polls ended today with the defendants receiving prison terms ranging from two-and-a-half to five years. The verdict handed down by Azerbaijan's Court for Serious Crimes is unlikely to appease civil rights groups, which blame President Ilham Aliyev for attempting to muzzle dissent in the South Caucasus country. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has expressed its concern over the ruling.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev (file photo) 19 October 2004 -- Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said today there are no unresolved political problems between Russia and Azerbaijan.
The United Nations World Food Program says it has been forced to cut its aid to displaced Azerbaijanis due to scarce funding. The agency's decision is likely to make life much harder for the tens of thousands of civilians in the country who depend heavily on such foreign aid. But the WFP's assistance to displaced persons in the country is just one aspect of the problem. Thousands of others -- refugees from recent wars in the Caucasus and elsewhere -- are also living in Azerbaijan, and in even worse conditions.
16 September 2004 -- The presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan today promised to continue attempts to resolve their long dispute over the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh.
15 September 2004 -- The leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan held talks today on the dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh.
13 September 2004 -- NATO's Cooperative Best Effort-2004 exercises, scheduled to take place on 14-27 September in Azerbaijan, have been canceled, according to a NATO press release of 13 September.
13 September 2004 -- NATO has canceled military exercises that were scheduled to start this month in Azerbaijan after authorities there objected to the participation of Armenian officers.
Ilham Aliyev Ten months after the disputed ballot that formalized his succession to the presidency, Ilham Aliyev has appealed to Azerbaijan's opposition parties to embark on a dialogue aimed at national reconciliation, zerkalo.az reported on 4 September. Leading members of at least three opposition parties, however, have reacted with caution and skepticism, arguing that the president should take specific actions to demonstrate his good faith.
By Harry Tamrazian
25 August 2004 -- Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliev today reiterated that the breakaway ethnic Armenian province of Nagorno-Karabakh must remain a part of his country.
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