AZERBAIJAN’S CONSUL GENERAL SPEAKS AT UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO
State Telegraph Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan
October 18, 2009 Sunday
The Consul General of Azerbaijan spoke last Thursday at University
of San Diego about continuing efforts to create alternative energy
sources and build a stronger society within the country and a stronger
community throughout the Caucasus region of Asia.
Azerbaijan is now a main distributor of energy to Russia, Turkey
and Georgia and hopes to expand to Europe in the future. Though only
about the size of Maine, the country has become very influential in
its region and is ahead of its time in researching alternative energy
sources while maintaining the beauty of its homeland, which contains
nine distinct climatic zones. The country also had the fastest growing
GDP in the world in 2007.
It is not that you have energy resources, it is how you use it, and
Azerbaijan has been using it for the good, Suleymanov said. We invest
our profits into new technologies because the government understands
that oil is finite. We are not going to rely on oil forever. We want
to turn black gold into human gold.
He said the Secretary of State of the Vatican called Azerbaijan an
example of tolerance. He said: We were the only nation whose troops
served in Iraq, and we are serving today in Afghanistan. We were the
first republic of the Muslim world in 1918. We granted equal rights
to women to vote in 1919.
America`s behavior towards Iraq has also been a question, to come so
convincingly to our nations and pull us over into Iraq and then simply
turn around. And of course we know the U.S. could be more active in
the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan. We know that America is
not utilizing 100 percent of its abilities to do that.