SAHAKASHVILI SAYS HEYDAR ALIYEV WAS GENIUS

The Azeri population of Georgia did not appreciate his ''curtseys'' and threatened to protest against the new authorities of the country.

The first official visit to Baku of Georgian President Mikhail Sahakashvili finished. The leaders of the two countries signed three interstate documents and agreed upon establishment of a common economic zone with common tariff and customs systems. At a press conference following the visit Ilham Aliyev said that positions of the official Baku and official Tbilisi coincide in almost all the issues including the ''territorial integrity''. Georgia and Azerbaijan, according to him, are strategic partners and friendly counties.

March 6, 2004

PanARMENIAN.Net - Mikhail Sahakashvili also was very generous in paying compliments. ''I have very war feelings toward Ilham Aliyev,'' he said immediately after his arrival. In an interview with the ''AzerTaj'' state news agency he said: ''Azerbaijan has a wonderful leader. I spoke about it with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. He is also delighted with him... I think everybody understands that on behalf of Ilham Aliyev Azerbaijan has got a young but at the same time very experienced and professional leader,'' Sahakashvili said. About his father: ''The model of relationship with neighboring countries established by Heydar Aliyev has no analogues in the world. I wonder how that Genius managed to do it. Ilham Aliyev successfully continues this line, and I try to learn from him''.

About Azerbaijan: ''I love Azerbaijan very much'', ''I adore Baku as all Georgians do'', ''We are learning from Azerbaijan''... These quotations are rather characteristic. However, there is an evident contrast between what Sahakashvili says now and what he was saying few months ago. According to the representative of the ''Heyrat'' national movement of Georgian Azeri Alibali Askerov, speaking at pre-electoral demonstrations only four months ago, the President of Georgia said his compatriots of Azerbaijani nationality were an ''ignorant mass instructed by Baku''.

It's interesting that on the eve of Sahakashvili's visit one of the leaders of the Azeri community of Georgia, head of the organization ''Georgia is our motherland'' Ali Babayev arrived in Baku. The aim was to create an unfavorable atmosphere for the President's visit. Babayev organized a campaign discrediting Sahakashvili. He accused the new authorities of Georgia of discrimination towards the Azeri. He lied that Sahakashvili was supporting the local Armenians. Babayev was convinced that Sahakashvili was taking revenge on Azeri for supporting Eduard Shevardnadze. He urged his compatriots not to have hopes for Sahakashvili. He threatened to organize protests.

Let's say, it is strange to hear such calls from representatives of the ethnical community which according to Sahakashvili is "the most faithful part of the population"... Maybe the President is mistaken?