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Geydar AlievEx-president of Azerbaijan
Date of Birth: 10.05.1923
Country:  Azerbaijan |
Content:
The End of an Era
The death of 80-year-old Heydar Aliyev, the former president of Azerbaijan, marks the end of an era, according to political experts and the global press. Aliyev senior embodied this era - both in his leadership style and way of thinking. Today, in Baku, the funeral of former President Heydar Aliyev takes place. He passed away on Friday evening in a clinic in Cleveland, USA, after a long and serious illness. The mourning ceremony is being held at the "Republic" Palace, where less than two months ago, his son, the new president of the republic, Ilham Aliyev, was inaugurated. On the same day, Heydar Aliyev will be buried in the center of Baku, at the Alley of Honors, next to his wife and older brother.
The Legacy of Heydar Aliyev
The death of 80-year-old Heydar Aliyev not only marks the passing of an ex-president of one of the former Soviet republics but also signifies the end of an era. Aliyev senior embodied this era in his leadership style and way of thinking. Unlike most of his colleagues in the Soviet Politburo, who had retired from active politics, Heydar Aliyev remained significant until the last days of his life, maintaining his position of power, even if only in his homeland. He was able to pass on power, not just to a loyal ally and like-minded person, but to his son, ensuring stability in the country and continuity of the political course he had shaped over the last decade. Heydar Aliyev played a crucial role in stopping the civil confrontation in the republic. Under his leadership, the first constitution of independent Azerbaijan was adopted, and significant economic reforms were initiated, primarily focused on implementing global energy projects to transport Azerbaijani oil and gas to world markets, a cause that Aliyev often referred to as the mission of his life.
Biography of Heydar Aliyev
Heydar Aliyev, born on May 10, 1923, in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of the Azerbaijan SSR, completed his studies at the local pedagogical college and later graduated from the History Department of Baku State University. From 1938 to 1941, he studied at the Azerbaijan Industrial Institute named after M. Azizbekov. From 1941 to 1944, he served as the head of the Department of the People's Commissariat Council of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, and from 1944, he worked in the security agencies of Azerbaijan, rising from a regular employee to the position of general and chairman of the republican KGB. From 1969 to 1982, Heydar Aliyev headed the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Azerbaijan. From 1976 to 1982, he was a candidate member of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the CPSU, and from 1982 to 1986, a member of the Politburo and the first deputy chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR. In 1990, he left the ranks of the CPSU and returned from Moscow to his homeland. From 1990 to 1993, he served as the chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic and simultaneously as the deputy chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Azerbaijan. On June 15, 1993, he was elected chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Azerbaijan. From June 24, 1993, he served as the acting president of the Republic of Azerbaijan. In October 1993, he was elected president of Azerbaijan and was re-elected to this position in October 1998. He had two children (a son and a daughter) and six grandchildren. In April 1999, Heydar Aliyev underwent coronary artery bypass surgery in Cleveland, Ohio, USA. He was brought back to Baku from a Turkish hospital in August of the current year after receiving treatment for a severe heart attack that occurred during one of his public appearances.
The body of Heydar Aliyev was brought from the USA to Baku on Sunday by a special flight. At the airport, the plane was greeted by members of the government commission in charge of organizing the funeral of the former president, led by his son and the current head of state, Ilham Aliyev, as well as representatives of the government and the parliament. Ilham Aliyev, along with his wife and children - two daughters and a son - were the first to approach the aircraft. The funeral procession then headed to the Taza-Pir Mosque in the city, where the deceased was bid farewell by his relatives and loved ones. The entire route from the airport to Baku was adorned with red carnations, a symbol of mourning. According to the decree signed by the President of the Republic, Ilham Aliyev, a 7-day national mourning period has been declared in Azerbaijan. State flags throughout the country have been lowered, and entertainment events have been canceled. The US Department of State, as well as the presidents of Turkey, Iran, Russia (in a telephone conversation with Ilham Aliyev), France, Ukraine, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Belarus, and many other countries, expressed their condolences to the current head of state and the entire Azerbaijani people on the death of the former president Heydar Aliyev. Nusrat Mamedov, the head of the Department of External Relations in the Executive Apparatus of the President, informed journalists that Vladimir Putin and Leonid Kuchma, the presidents of Russia and Ukraine, respectively, are coming to Baku to attend the funeral ceremony of Heydar Aliyev. Nino Burjanadze, the acting president of Georgia, Rajap Tayyip Erdogan, the Prime Minister of Turkey, and Yuriy Yarov, the Executive Secretary of the CIS, will also be present. Heydar Aliyev's closest old friends, former presidents Eduard Shevardnadze of Georgia and Suleyman Demirel of Turkey, will also attend.
Despite the seriousness of Aliyev's illness, the news of the former president's death in his homeland came as a shock. Over the past 10 years in power, this strong and determined leader managed to make his compatriots believe in his immortality.
