I have known Heydar Aliyev since 1972 when I arrived in Baku as a division commander of the 4th Army. I was introduced to Heydar Aliyev, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Azerbaijan, regarding my official position. He received me and told me about the situation in the republic. At that time, the republic was just beginning to revive. Under the leadership of Heydar Aliyev, construction work was carried out on a very large scale, plants and factories were built, the foundation of the oil and gas industry infrastructure was laid, and a number of other enterprises were created. Heydar Aliyev mobilized all his forces and abilities to the rise of the republic. He succeeded. Almost all construction processes are associated with his name.

After the first communication with Heydar Aliyev, I realized that when going to the audience of this person, I need to seriously prepare for the meeting. He could not be told about any issue shallowly, everything had to be concrete, precise, visual, and clear. He himself talked this way. He was a man with great business abilities, very cautious, educated, and competent not only in matters related to the economy of the republic but also in military affairs and especially in matters of foreign policy. In a word, I want to say that he was an extraordinary person who knew his business, true to his word, and was incredibly hardworking. I observed this several times later. As a member of the Bureau of the Central Committee of the CPSU, I saw how issues related to the development of the republic were discussed at weekly meetings: He delved into the details of each issue, studied situations, and knew the subtleties of all issues.

I would like to note that he was always interested in how things were going in the army, the military personnel always felt his care and attention. We conducted many exercises, the Minister of Defense of the Soviet Union Ustinov, and the Chief of the General Staff Marshal Ogarkov came to Baku to watch one of them. By the way, they appreciated the combat readiness of our troops. Heydar Aliyev paid great attention to the provision of necessary conditions for troops, housing for officers, and other important issues. He had a high reputation in the army.

Heydar Aliyev personally played an important role in my life. I want to tell a small fragment that clearly shows his rare human qualities. As elsewhere, there are various people in the army, and among them, there are envious ones, and those who harbor enmity and anger towards someone. While I was in Baku, my predecessor, General Kirilyuk, launched a campaign against me: he wanted to show that no one else was able to cope with the work entrusted to him. It got to the point that the question arose of sending me to another place. I was even forced to agree to a transfer to a new position. Unkown to me, Heydar Aliyev had different opinion regarding the issue. He had detailed information. It turned out that he contacted the Minister of Defense and asked him not to transfer me. I learned about this generosity of Heydar Aliyev only after he left for Moscow, for the post of Deputy Premier of the Soviet Union. Before his departure, he gathered all the members of the Bureau and talked with us. When it was my turn, as usual, I informed him of the situation. He asked me how I felt about his new assignment. I answered: “Heydar Aliyev, being one of the leaders of the Soviet Union is a great trust for you personally, for the Azerbaijani people. You have all the qualities required for this position. You have an innate talent, rich experience, deep knowledge, political wisdom, high intelligence, and foresight.” Heydar Aliyev thought for a moment and asked: “Yes, this is true, but who am I here?” I replied: “You are the first person.” And he once again asked: “So, who am I there?” He seemed to already know that he would be in a very difficult situation. He did not want to leave the republic, because he seemed to foresee the coming events. But then he preferred to fulfill his duty to the state. In the end, Heydar Aliyev asked me if I was offended. I was very surprised by this question. I said that you did me a lot of favors and you are a very valuable person to me. He didn’t ask this question out of nowhere, he thought I wanted to work in Moscow, but ended up in Azerbaijan. I replied that I didn’t want to go to Moscow, I was simply forced to do so.

He immediately said that he was aware of the situation, and several times asked Ustinov not to transfer me. He said, “Therefore, you may be offended by me. It’s my fault that you didn’t go to Moscow and stayed here.” I answered him in his own words: “Who am I here? The first soldier. But who am I there? I am nobody there.”

I remember that he wanted me, as a member of the Bureau, to go to the regions and get acquainted with the work done there. He asked me to present awards to the pioneers. I traveled to all regions of Azerbaijan. With him, we visited the natural disaster zone in the Ismayilli region. He called me and said that tents were needed there. I said that we have tents, but they are in reserve: at his insistence, we phoned the Deputy Minister of Defense Kurkotkin and informed him about the situation. Then we went together to the disaster zone and provided the region with everything necessary. At that time, Heydar Aliyev personally did a great job in the Ismayilli region.

I recall one moment about Heydar Aliyev with a smile. Once a delegation from Iraq visited us. I held trainings with them. I invited Heydar Aliyev, other members of the bureau of the Central Committee, and the government of the republic to the trainings. The spouse of cosmonaut Pavel Popovich, Marina Popovich, also said that she would like to attend this event. Marina Popovich, pilot and sportswoman, gave lectures to officers in Baku. I said that Heydar Aliyev would also be there, so you shouldn’t be allowed in. However, she persisted and asked permission to stay there. She even promised that she would tell Heydar Aliyev herself the reason of her presence.

I remember Heydar Aliyev got out of the car and saw me with a woman. It seems that he considered it to be indecent to bring a spouse to such an event. He frowned. I approached and reported the situation, at that moment Marina Popovich approached him, extended her hand and introduced herself: Colonel Popovich. Hearing this, Heydar Aliyev laughed and said: “I have heard a lot about you, but this is the first time I see you.” In conclusion, I want to mention once again, Heydar Aliyev had a special talent for leadership, a serious leader who deeply delved into all the details. Sometimes I ask myself: “Well, what am I to him? There are so many like me…” But he came to my aid during a difficult time, protected me from slander and gossip. After all, not everyone could dare to ask something from the Minister of Defense, and from such a person as Ustinov, who was Stalin’s commissar. However, Heydar Aliyev did not want to remain indifferent to my fate. He knew they were hurting me for no reason. To protect someone, you need a strong will and humanity. He considered it his duty to resolve such issues. Heydar Aliyev investigated the issue in each specific case and helped people. I saw many people whom he protected, supported and helped, he was not indifferent to anyone’s fate. You see, from this point of view, he was an unusual, rare person. He never allowed negligence, was extremely demanding of himself, demanded accuracy, discipline, and moral purity from everyone.