Azerbaijan puts on the Christmas lights

In Baku, capital of Azerbaijan, the Christmas lights are on.  Baku's iconic Azneft Square, already well illuminated during the rest of the year, is hosting a brightly lit Christmas Tree.

Festive lights illuminate the main streets of Baku, heralding the start of Christmas and New Year celebrations.

Azerbaijan is an oil exporting country, and the mood of Baku often reflects the price of oil on the international markets.  In that sense 2018 has been a year of mixed moods. Oil prices rallied early in the year, but became more volatile later in the year. There is no doubt that in Azerbaijan, government and citizens alike, will be keeping their eye on the oil prices in 2019. For the moment however it is time to celebrate, with big celebrations expected on new year's eve.

related content: With the Christmas tree up, Georgians hope for a respite from politics during the festive season

related content: The Caucasus prepares to celebrate new year and Christmas

source: commonspace.eu

photo: Baku's iconic Azneft square decorated for the festive season (picture courtesy of Xinhua News Agency, Beijing)

Related articles

Editor's choice
News
Armenian leader meets Putin in the Kremlin

Armenian leader meets Putin in the Kremlin

Armenian prime minister, Nikol Pashinyan, met at the Kremlin in Moscow, on Wednesday 1, April, with Russian president Vladimir Putin. The current state and prospects of Russian-Armenian strategic partnership and alliance, integration cooperation in the Eurasian region, and current issues on the regional agenda, in particular the development of economic and transport-logistics ties in the South Caucasus, were discussed, according to the Kremlin website. In his remarks before the meeting, Prime Minister Pashinyan said our relations with the Russian Federation are very deep, they are very important to us, and, in my opinion, they are developing dynamically in the context of the new realities in our region, when peace has finally been established between Armenia and Azerbaijan. And I think this has a positive impact on our relations with the Russian Federation, because for the first time since our independence, we have a railway connection with the Russian Federation. We import goods from Russia via Azerbaijan by rail. I hope we will also export in the near future. This, of course, strengthens our traditional economic ties, and it strengthens our ties within the Eurasian Economic Union. Regarding the European Union, of course, we know that, in principle, membership in the two associations is incompatible. But what we're doing and the agenda we have, at least for now, are compatible. That's a fact. And as long as there's an opportunity to combine these agendas, we will. And when processes develop to the point where a decision must be made, I'm confident that we, the citizens of the Republic of Armenia, will make that decision. Of course, in this context, our relations with the Russian Federation have never been and never will be in question, because, as I have already said, these ties and relations are very deep and not subject to discussion. (read the report in full by clicking the image at the top).

Popular

Editor's choice
Interview
Thursday Interview: Murad Muradov

Thursday Interview: Murad Muradov

Today, commonspace.eu starts a new regular weekly series. THURSDAY INTERVIEW, conducted by Lauri Nikulainen, will host  persons who are thinkers, opinion shapers, and implementors in their countries and spheres. We start the series with an interview with Murad Muradov, a leading person in Azerbaijan's think tank community. He is also the first co-chair of the Action Committee for a new Armenian-Azerbaijani Dialogue. Last September he made history by being the first Azerbaijani civil society activist to visit Armenia after the 44 day war, and the start of the peace process. Speaking about this visit Murad Muradov said: "My experience was largely positive. My negative expectations luckily didn’t play out. The discussions were respectful, the panel format bringing together experts from Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Turkey was particularly valuable during the NATO Rose-Roth Seminar in Yerevan, and media coverage, while varied in tone, remained largely constructive. Some media outlets though attempted to represent me as more of a government mouthpiece than an independent expert, which was totally misleading.  Overall, I see these initiatives as important steps in rebuilding trust and normalising professional engagement. The fact that soon a larger Azerbaijani civil society visits to Armenia followed, reinforces the sense that this process is moving in the right direction." (click the image to read the interview in full)