The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic forecasts improved relations with the Philippines and among the two nations’ peoples as it marked its 100th Founding Anniversary and 26 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
In a speech at the Manila Polo Club marking the 100th Founding Anniversary of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, Azerbaijani Ambassador to the Philippines Tamerlan Garayev said his country and the Philippines will continue to “explore more opportunities and are going to raise the current level of bilateral relations in the years to come.”
The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic marked its 100th Founding Anniversary on May 28. It was the first Muslim democratic government in the East and the first with a parliamentary form of government. It also marked the 95th birth anniversary of its National Leader Heydar Aliyev, founder of modern Azerbaijan.
“Our bilateral diplomatic relations with the Republic of the Philippines had been established in 27 March of 1992, and since then the relations have been developing dynamically,” Ambassador Garayev said at the ceremonies attended by members of the diplomatic corps that included Honorary Consul to the Philippines Jose de Venecia III, top officials of the Philippines’ Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Trade and Industry, and some members of the House of Representatives.
Garayev noted that his country has a very ancient history, tradition, and culture of statehood. “It was the first democratic republic in the East. It was the first republic that granted women universal voting rights,” he noted.
Including bananas and mangoes, and democracy, the nation’s gross domestic product has increased 3.2 times, its foreign currency reserves hadreached US$43billion – five times bigger than its total foreign debts – US230 billion had been invested into its economy, and the poverty level has dropped to only five percent of its population, one of the lowest in the world.