Gennadiy Seleznyov

Former Chairman of the State Duma of the Russian Federation

During his tenure in all positions, Heydar Aliyev has shown and continues to show himself as a politician with international authority and respect, as well as an intelligent leader. Many years of your successful experience in leading public offices surprises me.

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Heydar Aliyev was a very prominent political figure both in Azerbaijan and in the Soviet Union. Possessing extraordinary talent and an extraordinary mind, this man never lost faith that the truth would be on his side in the most difficult situations and that the life of Azerbaijan would change for the better. He was extremely devoted to his family and lifelong partner. At that time, many people did not understand his decision to bury Mrs. Zarifa in Azerbaijan. Today I understand why he did it. He is buried next to Mrs. Zarifa, which means they will be together again. They have been together in life and will be together in the afterlife.

I personally knew Heydar Aliyev very well. We talked for hours. Therefore, the death of this great personality is a great loss for me.

Heydar Aliyev was one of the leaders most committed to strengthening Russian-Azerbaijani relations. He understood that Russia was a true strategic partner. Russia knows Azerbaijan well, and Azerbaijan knows Russia. Heydar Aliyev took consistent steps to strengthen these relations, and to protect them. Therefore, today Azerbaijani-Russian relations have reached such a level that Azerbaijan is one of our best partners among the CIS countries.