Category: Azer News

Competitions in four sports will take place on October 7 as part of the CIS Games in Azerbaijan, Azernews reports.

The national teams of Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan will face off for the gold medal in chovqan in Shaki. Rhythmic gymnastics competitions are also scheduled for today.

The winners in fencing as well as medalists in Greco-Roman wrestling will be announced in Ganja Sports Palace.

Azerbaijan is hosting the third Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Games from September 28 to October 8, 2025, marking a significant event in the region’s sports calendar.

This multi-sport competition brings together athletes from CIS member states and invited countries, aiming to promote friendship, cooperation, and athletic excellence.

For the first time in the history of the CIS Games, competitions are being held across seven cities in Azerbaijan: Ganja, Mingachevir, Gabala, Shaki, Goygol, Yevlakh, and Khankandi.

Each city hosts events in different sports, with the second-largest city, Ganja, serving as the main hub and officially designated the CIS Sports Capital for 2025.

Around 23 sports are being contested across 12 venues, highlighting a broad and inclusive athletic program.

A total of 1,624 athletes from 13 countries are participating in the third CIS Games. Event mascots Babir and Leyla are helping to generate enthusiasm among young fans.

On October 7, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev welcomed the heads of state and government participating in the 12th Summit of the Council of Heads of State of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) held in Gabala, Azernews reports.

The heads of state and government posed for a group photograph.

President of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Ersin Tatar arrived in Azerbaijan on October 6 to participate in the 12th Summit of the Council of Heads of State of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS), Azernews reports.

The 11th Baku International Book Fair has opened at the Baku Expo Center, featuring the participation of hundreds of local and international organizations, Azernews reports.

Among the most visited pavilions was the booth of ICESCO’s Regional Office in Baku, which attracted a diverse range of visitors, including academics, students, publishers, and culture enthusiasts.

Throughout the fair, the booth has served as a hub for dialogue and the exchange of ideas. Visitors have had the chance to explore publications from five different countries, engage in discussions on scientific and literary heritage, and learn more about ICESCO’s initiatives in education, science, and culture.

Dr. Abdulhakeem AlSenan, Director of ICESCO’s Baku Regional Office, noted that the strong interest reflects growing attention to ICESCO’s mission.

“Our booth has become a vibrant platform for communication, idea-sharing, and promoting a culture of reading and knowledge exchange,” he said.

Over the course of the seven-day fair, more than 220 events will take place.

The significant interest in ICESCO’s booth underscores the importance of this space for cultural exchange and intellectual dialogue.

Note that the main task of ICESCO’s Regional Office in Baku, which opened on April 29, 2025, is to coordinate cooperation between the countries of the Caucasus and Central Asia – Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan.

This region is home to unique cultural treasures, ranging from the Great Silk Road to various examples of intangible heritage, and is capable of playing a significant role in shaping the global cultural landscape.

With its rich cultural legacy, Azerbaijan joined the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation (ICESCO) in 1991.

Since then, Azerbaijan has actively promoted the preservation of its Islamic cultural heritage.

The country successfully collaborates closely with various organisations, including the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the Islamic Development Bank, the Islamic Conference of Parliamentary Union, and the Islamic Conference of Youth Forum.

The 11th Baku International Book Fair runs until October 7 at the Baku Expo Center.

This year’s fair, under the theme “Technoman: yesterday’s legend, today’s event,” provides a platform for in-depth discussions on the role of technology in shaping human life within the modern scientific and cultural context.

The event features 41 international organizations from 18 countries, alongside over 100 local publishers, printing houses, and book-related institutions.

Over 250 events, including masterclasses for both children and adults, book presentations on topics like inclusion, book signings, conferences, symposiums, contests, as well as reading and music sessions are being held throughout the fair.

Notable authors and scholars from countries including Turkiye, Argentina, the UK, Lithuania, Qatar, and more are participating in the event.

Shuttle buses are available for visitors from “Elml?r Akademiyasi,” “28 May,” and “Koroglu” metro stations to the Baku Expo Center. Entry to the fair is free, and it is open daily from 10:00 to 20:00.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban arrived in Azerbaijan on October 6 to attend the 12th Summit of the Council of Heads of State of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS), Azernews reports.

A guard of honor was lined up at Gabala International Airport in honor of the high-ranking guest.

Orban was welcomed at the airport by Azerbaijani Minister of Culture Adil Karimli and other officials.

The Organization of Turkic States (OTS), previously known as the Turkic Council or the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States, is an intergovernmental entity that includes all but one of the internationally recognized Turkic sovereign nations. The primary objective is to foster extensive collaboration among the Turkic nations. The General Secretariat of OTS is situated in Istanbul, Trkiye.

Although many Swedish schools offer instruction in English, current legislation allows the hiring of foreign teachers without a Swedish teaching license. According to the law, these teachers must have an educational background equivalent to a Swedish teaching degree and must be capable of teaching in English. However, it has emerged that no government body is actively verifying whether these requirements are actually being met, Azernews reports.

Recent inspections have revealed that many of these teachers are not native English speakers, and in several cases, their pedagogical qualifications are questionable. The responsibility for checking teacher credentials falls entirely on individual schools – a situation that, according to education experts, poses a serious risk to the quality of education.

‘This is unacceptable. The state must ensure that laws and standards are enforced,’ said a representative of Almega Utbildning, a trade organization representing private education providers in Sweden.

Sweden’s Education Minister, Simone Mohamsson, acknowledged the lack of oversight and admitted there are no reliable statistics on how many schools are employing such teachers. ‘It is unacceptable that teachers in Swedish classrooms may not be proficient in either Swedish or English,’ she said, calling for a formal review of the current legal framework.

Sweden has seen a rise in international and bilingual schools in recent years, largely due to increased globalization and growing demand from expatriate families and internationally-minded Swedes. However, this push for internationalization may be outpacing regulatory oversight. Critics warn that without stricter control, the reputation of Sweden’s education system-which is traditionally known for high standards-could be at risk.

Kur Olympic Training and Sports Center has hosted rowing competitions as part of the third CIS Games, Azernews reports.

Based on the results of the two-day competition, Azerbaijani rowers have won a total of four medals.

Alimurad Hajizade claimed the silver medal. Amil Ramazanov won two bronze medals.

The duet of Ivan Vorobyanski and Huseyn Hasanov secured third place and earned a bronze medal.

Azerbaijan is hosting the third Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Games from September 28 to October 8, 2025, marking a significant event in the region’s sports calendar.

This multi-sport competition brings together athletes from CIS member states and invited countries, aiming to promote friendship, cooperation, and athletic excellence.

For the first time in the history of the CIS Games, competitions are being held across seven cities in Azerbaijan: Ganja, Mingachevir, Gabala, Shaki, Goygol, Yevlakh, and Khankandi.

Each city hosts events in different sports, with the second-largest city, Ganja, serving as the main hub and officially designated the CIS Sports Capital for 2025.

Around 23 sports are being contested across 12 venues, highlighting a broad and inclusive athletic program.

A total of 1,624 athletes from 13 countries had confirmed participation. Event mascots Babir and Leyla are helping to generate enthusiasm among young fans.

On November 2, Azerbaijan will celebrate the 5th anniversary of its glorious victory in the 44-day Patriotic War, Azernews reports.

To mark this occasion, the Ministry of Youth and Sports, in collaboration with the Baku City Circuit Operations Company and the Azerbaijan Athletics Federation, will organize the next charity event, the “Victory Run.”

The Victory Run will start near the “Seven Beauties” fountain in the Seaside National Park. The run will cover a distance of 10 km, and the participants who reach the finish line first will be declared winners and awarded prizes.

In addition to the race, various interesting and entertaining activities will be organized. All participants who reach the finish line will receive a medal. They will also be able to download their participant certificate from the official website of the event.

Those who wish to join the race, held under the slogan “Pride Forward,” must pay a minimum registration fee of 20 manat for charitable purposes. The funds raised from the run will be donated to YASHAT Foundation.

The Victory Run has been held annually since 2021 as a tradition.

On October 6, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev met with President of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Ersin Tatar in Gabala, Azernews reports.

In recent months, Armenia’s shifting foreign and security policy has once again exposed deep divisions within its political and social fabric. As Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s government pursues new directions in diplomacy and defense, seeking balance between East and West, the reactions from traditional power circles and diaspora groups have been anything but uniform.

Nowhere is this more evident than in the fierce criticism emerging from the diaspora regarding Armenia’s latest cooperation with the United States under the so-called Crossroads of Peace initiative. Framed by its opponents as a ‘Trojan partnership’ and a threat to sovereignty, this rhetoric reflects not a realistic security concern but a broader struggle over identity, power, and control of Armenia’s political narrative.

The recent “white paper” from the Armenian Weekly is a clear example of politically motivated fearmongering. The narrative, disguised as a defense of sovereignty, misrepresents the purpose of the Crossroads of Peace initiative and deliberately overlooks Armenia’s own strategic failures and choices regarding geopolitical dependency.

Armenia’s latest cooperation with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) underlines a familiar pattern: Yerevan repeatedly mistakes symbolic foreign attention for strategic importance. The framework, far from being a Western plot, is a limited technical project aimed at assessing and modernizing border management – something Armenia has long lacked capacity in due to systemic mismanagement and overreliance on outdated Soviet structures.

Labeling such cooperation as a ‘surrender of sovereignty’ betrays a deeper insecurity within Armenian policymaking circles. Decades of dependence on Russia’s security umbrella have left the Armenian state incapable of sustaining independent defense capabilities, and now, when Western engagement comes with transparency requirements, nationalist circles interpret it as espionage. The contradiction is glaring: a country that has hosted Russian border troops for over 30 years suddenly finds U.S. technical experts a threat to its autonomy.

Diaspora’s appeal for ‘strategic neutrality’ conveniently ignores the reality that Armenia long abandoned neutrality when it became a member of the CSTO and hosted a Russian military base in Gyumri. The paper’s call to ‘reorient defense policy’ is a rhetorical maneuver to justify Yerevan’s gradual detachment from Moscow while scapegoating the West for Armenia’s internal political fragility.

The U.S. mission’s stated purpose, to conduct a capability gap analysis, is a standard practice within international cooperation frameworks. Armenia’s own request for such assistance reflects an acknowledgment of governance and border control weaknesses. If sovereignty were genuinely the issue, such discussions would have begun when Russian soldiers were manning Armenia’s borders with Trkiye and Iran.

Perhaps the most revealing element of the ‘white paper’ is its historical revisionism. The authors selectively cite events from the early 20th century to frame the West as an eternal betrayer of Armenia, while conveniently erasing the catastrophic results of Yerevan’s own strategic miscalculations, from its militarized policies in Garabagh to its diplomatic isolation in recent years.

This instrumental use of history, combined with alarmist language about ‘occupation’ and ‘foreign control,’ aims to evoke existential fear rather than promote realistic policy debate. Ironically, it is precisely this mindset – framing every external actor as an enemy – that has confined Armenia to a cycle of dependency and isolation.

The geopolitical landscape of the South Caucasus has changed irreversibly. Azerbaijan’s strengthened sovereignty, Trkiye’s assertive regional diplomacy, and new transit and energy routes have made old Cold War-style alignments obsolete. Yerevan’s dilemma is not about ‘foreign infiltration,’ but about its inability to adapt to the region’s new balance of power.

In fact, we have written on the same issues many times before. Without a doubt, this is proving itself again. Not everyone agrees with the current situation. Leaders from the Armenian diaspora, church, and nationalist figures argue that recent developments undermine the Armenian cause. These actors create a constellation of influence that opposes Yerevan’s [current] realist ideologies. What they defend is not merely a set of territorial claims, but a worldview rooted in grievance, martyrdom, and a narrative of heroic victimhood. As governments have come and gone in Yerevan, the Church has acted as a stable institution and, at times, a power center in its own right, arguably functioning as a sort of “deep state.” Significant reforms and steps not taken today could be undermined at any moment in the near future.

While the paper warns of ‘foreign control,’ the real concern for Armenia should be its own diminishing agency and relevance in regional processes such as the Middle Corridor and the Zangezur Corridor (recently labeled as the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity), initiatives that continue to progress without Yerevan’s participation or influence.

The ‘Trojan horse’ narrative serves one purpose: to deflect responsibility from Armenia’s domestic failures and geopolitical confusion. By portraying cooperation as infiltration and partnership as espionage, such discourse isolates Armenia further from the modernizing and stabilizing trends of the South Caucasus.

In reality, sovereignty is not eroded by cooperation; it is eroded by the inability to use it responsibly.