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BAKU: Aliyev warns of new hostilities in NK, praises economic growth

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  • BAKU: Aliyev warns of new hostilities in NK, praises economic growth

    AzTV Baku, Azerbaijan
    Dec 31 2008



    Azeri leader warns of new hostilities in Karabakh, praises economic
    growth


    Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has promised to continue efforts to
    regain control of Nagornyy Karabakh, a predominantly ethnic
    Armenian-populated territory that has broken away from the central
    government's control.

    In a New Year address to the nation on 31 December, which was
    broadcast on state television, Aliyev once again warned that
    Azerbaijan could resort to military force to retake the territory
    should peace talks fail.

    "Nagornyy Karabakh is a historical Azerbaijani territory. We will make
    every effort - political, diplomatic and, if need be, military - to
    restore Azerbaijan's territorial integrity. We have the right to do
    so. International law allows us," Aliyev said.

    Nagornyy Karabakh, which is home to around 140,000 ethnic Armenians,
    seceded from Azerbaijan following a separatist war in the early
    1990s. Some 30,000 people were killed and over 1 million were driven
    out of their homes during the conflict.

    International efforts to mediate a peaceful settlement of the conflict
    have failed so far as Nagornyy Karabakh remains under Armenian control
    along with a chunk of adjacent Azerbaijani territory.

    Azerbaijan's military spending amounted to 2bn dollars in 2008, and it
    will be increased further in the coming year, Aliyev said.

    "We are doing this. We must do this because we are in a state of war,"
    Aliyev said. "The war has not finished yet. Only the first stage of it
    has ended, and we should always be ready to liberate our native land
    by any means."

    Economy

    President Aliyev also praised Azerbaijan's economic performance in the
    outgoing year.

    "Our economy continued to grow at a high rate in 2008. I can say that
    Azerbaijan has been the world's fastest growing economy in the past
    four years. This is a great achievement," Aliyev said.

    He went on to say that poverty had been sharply reduced during his
    first five-year term in office. While 49 per cent of Azerbaijanis were
    poor in 2003, this was reduced to 16 per cent in 2008, Aliyev said,
    adding that the figure would shrink further in the future.

    Aliyev also said he had fulfilled his campaign promise of creating
    600,000 jobs in the country.

    "Today I am proud to say that 750,000 news jobs have been created in
    Azerbaijan in the past five years. This has given very big impetus to
    the development of [Azerbaijan's] regions," he said.

    [translated from Azeri]
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