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Heydar Aliyev: I sincerely welcome the distinguished guests. Welcome to 
Azerbaij an! Mr. Secretary - General !  I am pleased to meet you again. Four 
years ago, in May 1994, I went to the headquarter of NATO in Brussels for the 
fi rst time, and signed “Partnership for Peace” program. In May 1996, I went 
to Brussels for the second time, and Mr. Secretary - General, I met you there. 
Then, I submitt ed the document of Azerbaij an for joining the “Partnership for 
Peace” program to you. Thus, we joined to this program and cooperate with 
you. Mr. Javier Solana, you fi rst visited Baku in February last year. I remember 
our meetings in Madrid and New York, we had productive talks. You are visit-
ing Azerbaij an again. I think that the relations between Azerbaij an and NATO 
have noticeably improved, and Azerbaij an’s participation in “Partnership for 
Peace” program was successful in the past four years. We highly appreciate  it 
and intend to continue this cooperation. I assume that we can thoroughly dis-
cuss numerous issues in this regard during your visit to Baku. 
Javier Solana: Mr. President, many thanks for your kind words. I always 
remember with pleasure our three meetings last year. Most importantly, we 
have assembled to discuss not only what has been done within “Partnership 
for Peace” program, but also to discuss other issues concerning the security in 
the world. In my opinion, we can learn more from the exchange of views with 
President Heydar Aliyev. I think there are more issues to deal with in the XXI 
century since the globalization is under way, and initiatives are made region-
ally. The international conference of Baku on the restoration of the historical 
Silk Road, organized on the initiative of Azerbaij an, is a remarkable event. This 
conference is a proof to globalization, on the one hand, and to regional coop-
eration, on the other. Participation of more than 30 countries in the conference 
indicates that they are willing to cooperate. It is a good example of mutual 
activity implemented through economic cooperation, trade, and joint initia-
tives for the sake of security. I think we must focus more on safety and security 
in the forthcoming century. Indeed, the word “safety” has a practical mean-
ing. But it is also related to economic development, trade and other issues that 
will eventually ensure the security of our world in the upcoming century. Mr. 
President, I congratulate you on your initiatives. Bilateral relations between 
From the speech of the Azerbaij ani President 
Heydar Aliyev with the delegation of NATO Headed 
by Secretary - General Javier Solana 
Presidential Palace,  September 30, 1998
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Azerbaij an and NATO develop well, and I am glad for that. We want Azerbai-
jan and NATO cooperate on a bilateral basis more widely. I thank your for your 
hospitability, and I am pleased to be here again.    
Heydar Aliyev: I extend my gratitude to you, Mr. Secretary - General of 
NATO. I fully agree with you that the world is changing rapidly, and we should 
achieve security in the world towards the XXI century. Safety and security are 
of utmost importance for each country and for the whole world. It is very cru-
cial for Azerbaij an. Azerbaij an has a strategical location. I stress our willing-
ness of an effi
  cient use of this location not only for our republic, but also for our 
partners. I want to note that there are many challenges for Azerbaij an. As your 
are aware, the Armenian-Azerbaij ani confl ict is still unresolved.  The Armenian 
armed forces have occupied 20 per cent of the Azerbaij ani territory as a remet 
of this confl ict. More than a million of Azerbaij ani citizens have been expelled 
from the occupied territories. Now they live in tents, in terrible conditions. We 
signed a ceasefi re agreement four years ago. The confl ict, however, has not 
been sett led yet. We want to solve the confl ict peacefully. The Minsk Group 
and co-chairs - Russia, the U.S. and France of OSCE, are engaged in this issue. 
We hope that we shall achieve the peaceful sett lement of the confl ict. But we 
are concerned about some other factors. For instance, while there is  a ceasefi re 
between Armenia and Azerbaij an, Russia supplied Armenia with ammunition 
and arms worth of a billion USD illegally. We protested against it. Regretfully, 
no positive feedback has been received yet. Moreover, we are concerned about 
the fact that Russia keeps its military bases and armed forces in Armenia, and 
to some extent in Georgia. We att empt to establish security in the Caucasus. 
Countries in the Caucasus are independent states. There is no need to keep 
a military base and armed forces of other countries in Armenia and Georgia. 
Certainly, it impedes the maintainance of peace and security in the Caucasus. 
Furthermore, I express my gratitude to you, Mr. Secretary - General for your 
high appreciation of the international conference in Baku, on September 7-8, 
dedicated to the restoration of the Silk Road. We establish a landmark in the 
history while heading towards XXI century. Participation of delegates from 32 
countries, including 9 presidents and delegates of 13 international institutions 
in this conference indicates that they share the same views. Important econom-
ic issues have been discussed. The adopted decisions and statements are aimed 
at ensuring peace and security in our region, at the restoration of the Silk Road. 
Another international conference and the Tenth Congress of the Caucasian 
Muslims were opened today in Baku. I participate in it, too. Delegates from the 
Caucasus republics and from Islamic countries as well as religious leaders. The 
underlying issue of the international conference is to maintain peace and se-
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