Azerbaijan - a nation with a majority-Turkic and majority-Muslim population - was briefly independent from 1918 to 1920; it regained its independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Despite a 1994 cease-fire, Azerbaijan has yet to resolve its conflict with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh, a primarily Armenian-populated region, assigned to Soviet Azerbaijan in the 1920s by Moscow. Armenia and Azerbaijan began fighting over the area in 1988; the struggle escalated after both countries attained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. By May 1994, when a cease-fire took hold, ethnic Armenian forces held not only Nagorno-Karabakh but also seven surrounding provinces in the territory of Azerbaijan. Corruption in the country is ubiquitous, and the government, which eliminated presidential term limits in a 2009 referendum, has been accused of authoritarianism. Although the poverty rate has been reduced in recent years due to revenue from oil production, the promise of widespread wealth resulting from the continued development of Azerbaijan's energy sector remains largely unfulfilled.
Country Name
Conventional long form: Republic of Azerbaijan
Conventional short form: Azerbaijan
Local long form: Azarbaycan Respublikasi
Local short form: Azarbaycan
Former: Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic
Government Type
republic
Capital
Name: Baku (Baki, Baky)
Geographic coordinates: 40 23 N, 49 52 E
Time difference: UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Administrative divisions
59 rayons (rayonlar; rayon - singular), 11 cities (saharlar; sahar - singular), 1 autonomous republic (muxtar respublika)
Rayons: Abseron Rayonu, Agcabadi Rayonu, Agdam Rayonu, Agdas Rayonu, Agstafa Rayonu, Agsu Rayonu, Astara Rayonu, Balakan Rayonu, Barda Rayonu, Beylaqan Rayonu, Bilasuvar Rayonu, Cabrayil Rayonu, Calilabad Rayonu, Daskasan Rayonu, Davaci Rayonu, Fuzuli Rayonu, Gadabay Rayonu, Goranboy Rayonu, Goycay Rayonu, Haciqabul Rayonu, Imisli Rayonu, Ismayilli Rayonu, Kalbacar Rayonu, Kurdamir Rayonu, Lacin Rayonu, Lankaran Rayonu, Lerik Rayonu, Masalli Rayonu, Neftcala Rayonu, Oguz Rayonu, Qabala Rayonu, Qax Rayonu, Qazax Rayonu, Qobustan Rayonu, Quba Rayonu, Qubadli Rayonu, Qusar Rayonu, Saatli Rayonu, Sabirabad Rayonu, Saki Rayonu, Salyan Rayonu, Samaxi Rayonu, Samkir Rayonu, Samux Rayonu, Siyazan Rayonu, Susa Rayonu, Tartar Rayonu, Tovuz Rayonu, Ucar Rayonu, Xacmaz Rayonu, Xanlar Rayonu, Xizi Rayonu, Xocali Rayonu, Xocavand Rayonu, Yardimli Rayonu, Yevlax Rayonu, Zangilan Rayonu, Zaqatala Rayonu, Zardab Rayonu
Cities: Ali Bayramli Sahari, Baki Sahari, Ganca Sahari, Lankaran Sahari, Mingacevir Sahari, Naftalan Sahari, Saki Sahari, Sumqayit Sahari, Susa Sahari, Xankandi Sahari, Yevlax Sahari
Autonomous republic: Naxcivan Muxtar Respublikasi (Nakhichevan)
Independence
30 August 1991 (declared from the Soviet Union); 18 October 1991 (adopted by the Supreme Council of Azerbaijan)
National Holiday
Founding of the Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan, 28 May (1918)
Constitution
adopted 12 November 1995; modified by referendum 24 August 2002
Legal system
based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch
Chief of state: President Ilham ALIYEV (since 31 October 2003)
Head of government: Prime Minister Artur RASIZADE (since 4 November 2003); First Deputy Prime Minister Yaqub EYYUBOV (since June 2006)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president and confirmed by the National Assembly
(For more information visit the World Leaders website)
Elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for unlimited terms); election last held on 15 October 2008 (next to be held in October 2013); prime minister and first deputy prime minister appointed by the president and confirmed by the National Assembly
Election results: Ilham ALIYEV reelected president; percent of vote - Ilham ALIYEV 89%, Igbal AGHAZADE 2.9%, five other candidates with smaller percentages
note: several political parties boycotted the election due to unfair conditions; OSCE observers concluded that the election did not meet international standards
Legislative branch
unicameral National Assembly or Milli Mejlis (125 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
Elections: last held on 6 November 2005 (next to be held in November 2010)
Election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Yeni 58, Azadliq coalition 8, CSP 2, Motherland 2, other parties with single seats 9, independents 42, undetermined 4
Judicial branch
Supreme Court
Political Parties and Leaders
Azadliq (Freedom) coalition (Azerbaijan Democratic Party, Azerbaijan Popular Front Party, Musavat Party); Azerbaijan Democratic Party or ADP [Sardar JALALOGLU]; Azerbaijan Popular Front or AXCP [Ali KARIMLI]; Civil Solidarity Party or CSP [Sabir RUSTAMKHANLI]; Civil Unity Party [Sabir HACIYEV]; Classic People's Front of Azerbaijan [Mirmahmud MIRALI-OGLU]; Democratic Reform Party [Asim MOLLAZADE]; Great Creation Party [Fazil Gazanfaroglu MUSTAFAYEV]; Hope (Umid) Party [Iqbal AGAZADE]; Liberal Party of Azerbaijan [Lala Shovkat HACIYEVA]; Motherland Party [Fazail AGAMALI]; Musavat (Equality) [Isa GAMBAR, chairman]; Open Society Party [Rasul GULIYEV, in exile in the US]; Social Democratic Party of Azerbaijan or SDP [Araz ALIZADE and Ayaz MUTALIBOV (in exile)]; Social Welfare Party [Hussein KAZIMLI]; Whole Azerbaijan Popular Front [Gudrat HASANGULIYEV]; Yeni (New) Azerbaijan Party [President Ilham ALIYEV]
note: opposition parties regularly factionalize and form new parties
Political pressure groups and leaders
Azerbaijan Public Forum [Eldar NAMAZOV]; Karabakh Liberation Organization
International organization participation
ADB, BSEC, CE, CICA, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECO, FAO, GCTU, GUAM, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Diplomatic representation in the US
Chief of mission: Ambassador Yashar ALIYEV
Chancery: 2741 34th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
Telephone: [1] (202) 337-3500
FAX:[1] (202) 337-5911
Consulate(s) general: Los Angeles
Diplomatic representation from the US
Chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Donald LU
Embassy: 83 Azadlig Prospecti, Baku AZ1007
Mailing address: American Embassy Baku, US Department of State, 7050 Baku Place, Washington, DC 20521-7050
Telephone: [994] (12) 4980-335 through 337
FAX: [994] (12) 4656-671
Flag description
Three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), red, and green; a crescent and eight-pointed star in white are centered in the red band; the blue band recalls Azerbaijan's Turkic heritage, red stands for modernization and progress, and green refers to Islam; the crescent moon is an Islamic symbol, while the eight-pointed star represents the eight Turkic peoples of the world
