No peaceful life ahead: Ilham Aliyev speaks on challenges facing Azerbaijan - VIDEO

For Azerbaijan, there are no internal risks; all risks for it are formed outside its borders.

As 1news.az reports, this was stated by President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, answering a corresponding question from international journalist and former deputy director general of the Russian news agency TASS Mikhail Gusman at the IV Shusha Global Media Forum.

"As for potential risks, I have repeatedly spoken on this topic that, fortunately, we have no internal risks - neither existing nor potential. All risks are formed outside our borders. And as for risks of a political nature, they are negligible. We also do not expect risks associated with ideological sabotage, because until today there have been quite a few of them, but none of them have been successful. The authorities and society of Azerbaijan firmly stand on the principles laid down in our Constitution," the head of state emphasized.

At the same time, he noted the existence of physical risks from which "no one can be insured today."

"Taking into account modern realities, modern types of warfare, today no country, well, perhaps with rare exceptions, can feel completely safe," the president pointed out. According to him, the risk for Azerbaijan is related to the fact that it is located between two warring countries, moreover with unpredictable consequences for them.

Ilham Aliyev noted that for Azerbaijan today the only risk is certain attempts to involve it in some adventures.

"Previously, such attempts were made, but they were more political in nature. We have always successfully repelled them, and they have practically ceased. Today it is of a more serious and more threatening nature. Therefore, protecting ourselves, as they say, is nothing new to us. Fighting a consolidated community as well, strengthening our security, borders, threat response systems - this is what we have been doing, well, at least since 2003. And, apparently, I will continue to do so as long as my strength allows. This process will never end," the Azerbaijani leader said.

He said there would be "no chance" to catch a breath: "And even in 2020 after the victory in the Second Karabakh War, we did not rest for a second. There was not even time and, honestly speaking, desire to celebrate, because you can celebrate in such a way that later you can sleep through everything. We immediately started preparing. And further, after 2023, when obvious threats and attempts to sanction Azerbaijan began, we have been repelling them practically until now. And on different fronts."

In this regard, the president noted that one of the criteria of a middle power is the ability to repel attacks "on many fronts."

"I do not want to compare our conflict with any other, but in some cases there is a group of countries that supports you, and there is a group of countries that attacks you. In our case, everything was completely different. And we had to repel attacks both physically and politically in all directions, and this continues to this day. Therefore, there will be no peaceful life. Let no one count on that. Including you," the head of state said, addressing Mikhail Gusman. "You, as a victim, of course, need rehabilitation."

Ilham Aliyev called Mikhail Gusman a worthy son of the Azerbaijani people who, for almost 40 years of life and work in Russia, never severed ties with Azerbaijan, "was always with us, always rejoiced in our successes, worried about difficulties": "During the Second Karabakh War, he (Gusman - ed.) practically lived here and made reports from the front line, which also demonstrated his character, his attitude towards his people, towards his country, and also helped us break through the information blockade. In this case, he is speaking here on behalf of the victims (laughed)."

The Azerbaijani president recalled that last year, because of a question he asked him at this same forum, Gusman was dismissed from the position of deputy director general of TASS: "He was removed from his position in an organization to which he had devoted more than one decade, which he essentially headed and did a lot to develop TASS as an international news agency.

We also had other victims from Russia last year (referring to political scientist Sergei Markov - ed.). But I don't see him today (laughed). Maybe he has already been arrested. God forbid, of course! God grant him health! But one was dismissed from his position simply for a positive question to the President of Azerbaijan, and the other was declared a foreign agent only because he made a positive comment about Azerbaijan. Therefore, Alexey (Alexey Naumov - Russian journalist who asked the president a question earlier), be careful! (and laughed again)."