Presentation “The role of diplomacy in modern politics”

Mr. Anar Imanov's presentation began with a review of the history and the history of diplomacy in particular of Azerbaijan.

Before the 20th century, Azerbaijan was a collection of small kingdoms ruled by khans (kings). The small kingdoms were heavily influenced by two great powers: the Persian Empire (largely in modern-day Iran) and the Russian Empire. After the collapse of the Russian Empire in World War I, Azerbaijan, along with Armenia and Georgia, became part of the Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic. In 1918, Azerbaijan declared independence and established a parliamentary republic called the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic. In 1919, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan was established, giving birth to the country's diplomatic service. Diplomatic efforts helped to win recognition from other countries for the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic at the Paris Peace Conference on January 11, 1919.

Prof. Dr. Pham Quang Minh highly appreciated Ambassador Anar Imanov's active participation in exchange activities between the Embassy of Azerbaijan and the University of Social Sciences and Humanities.

However, the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic remained until 1920, when the Red Army annexed the country to the Soviet Union. During the period under Soviet control, Azerbaijan's diplomacy had little voice of its own. It was not until November 1990 that Azerbaijan declared its independence as the Republic of Azerbaijan when the Soviet Union was on the verge of complete collapse. After that, the late President Heydar Aliyev implemented an independent foreign policy, equal to all countries in the world. This policy has been maintained by President Ilham Aliyev to this day.

Recognizing its important geo-strategic position and its oil strength, Azerbaijan has made diplomatic efforts to convince major oil companies in the world to invest in oil exploitation. Billions of dollars earned from oil exploitation have been used to build infrastructure to serve the country's development. Azerbaijan has also created many pipelines to supply oil, playing a role in ensuring energy security for European countries. Azerbaijan has also helped Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam develop the oil and gas industry since 1959. From a socio-cultural perspective, Azerbaijan plays a role in connecting the Eastern and Western worlds by organizing many sports events and international conferences with the participation of both Muslim and European countries.

Ambassador Anar Imanov pledged to continue supporting educational exchange activities and student and lecturer exchanges between the University of Social Sciences and Humanities and other universities in Vietnam.

In addition to illustrating the role of diplomacy in the development of each country, Mr. Anar Imanov also highlighted its significance in ensuring international peace and security. One of the most typical diplomatic tools is international law, through which countries accept to relate to each other according to a common system of regulations. However, according to Mr. Anar Imanov, international law is being eroded by non-compliance, disrespect and the use of double standards by countries. The consequences of this are international problems such as territorial disputes and conflicts, terrorism, and radical Islam. We can see these consequences in international crises such as in Syria and Libya. Therefore, diplomacy plays a role in calling on countries to respect the basic principles of international law, the most important of which are respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity and non-interference in each other's internal affairs.

In relation to Vietnam, it can be seen that the foreign policies between the two countries have many similarities. Vietnam is also located in an important geostrategic position, maintaining a policy of autonomy and independence. Vietnam also experienced a long period of struggle for independence, so it clearly understands the value of diplomacy and negotiation in resolving international disputes peacefully. Over the past 25 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, Vietnam and Azerbaijan have together achieved remarkable achievements in many fields, while contributing to maintaining a stable and harmonious world order.

After the presentation, Mr. Anar Imanov received questions from the audience on issues such as social and political crises in Azerbaijan; prospects for resolving the sovereignty dispute between Azerbaijan and Armenia; difficulties that Azerbaijan faces in post-independence economic recovery; main areas of cooperation between Vietnam and Azerbaijan, and the plans of the Azerbaijan Embassy in promoting relations between the two countries.