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Azerbaijani President: Information attack we encountered in the Russian media during this time, of course, caused great harm to the public perception of Russia

11 October 2020 17:02 (UTC +04:00)

"I don't think it has changed. The fact that there are many Turkish flags is natural. We are fraternal peoples. Today there is such a level of trust, mutual support and relations between Turkey and Azerbaijan that, in my opinion, cannot be found between any other countries of the world, even the closest allies. This is a reality," President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has said in an interview with the Russian RBC TV channel on October 10, APA reports.

"And this reality was created by us – the leadership of Turkey and Azerbaijan. And it is not about our common roots and our common history. There are also peoples with close ethnic roots in the world, like Turkey and Azerbaijan, who are at war with each other. And you know that very well. Or they are engaged in intrigues against each other. Therefore, the presence of Turkish flags in Azerbaijan is a reality. Also, if you go to Turkey, you will see Azerbaijani flags in many places. As for the attitude towards Russia, I can give you one fact. Before the pandemic, the annual growth of Russian citizens visiting Azerbaijan was in the region of 15-20 percent. Last year it approached a million people. I have always said that Russians are attracted to Azerbaijan not only by the cuisine, not only by the beaches, not only by history, but also by the fact that they feel comfortable here, they feel at home, they speak Russian with our people. You probably know that nowhere else are there as many schools in Russian as in Azerbaijan – more than 300. There are Russian universities and branches in Azerbaijan. Russian musical and theater groups were here almost every week before the pandemic. Therefore, the attitude towards Russia and towards the Russian people inhabiting the Russian Federation is extremely positive in Azerbaijan. But you have already spent several days here and you know how the factor of the Armenian occupation influences the mentality of the people. People catch every word, people catch every gesture, every facial expression. But I will tell you quite frankly, during this time, during these days of the week when some Russian channels run rabid anti-Azerbaijani propaganda, falsification, manipulation, provide an unbalanced composition of talk show participants, when the Azerbaijani people are insulted, when the President of Azerbaijan is insulted on leading Russian channels, this, of course, does not add credibility to Russia. I brought this issue to the attention of the Russian leadership. Not in terms of the fact that we are concerned about it – the Azerbaijani society and public opinion are formed within Azerbaijan. But in terms of the fact that this may someday lead to certain difficulties in our plans. We have plans with Russia for the further development of cooperation. We are now actively working on five roadmaps for economic and other cooperation, there are very good issues politically. But the information attack we encountered in the Russian media during this time, of course, caused great harm to the public perception of Russia. I think it will take time and effort for the leadership of both sides to correct this situation," Azerbaijani President said.