- Mr ambassador, How did you meet the appointment to the position of Ambassador to Azerbaijan? Did you know anything about Azerbaijan before arriving here?
- I am very excited to have been appointed to this position. Azerbaijan is a dynamic, fascinating country with a rich history and deep culture. It is a country on the up that is making an impression in the world. I was very keen to come to Azerbaijan and play a part in supporting this success story. I knew quite a bit about Azerbaijan before arriving. I had the chance to attend a Mugham concert in London before arriving in Baku and had also experienced Azerbaijani food in a restaurant in London. I also read a lot about bout the history of Azerbaijan and the difficult regional environment it had to deal with, particularly the painful unresolved conflict with Armenia over Nagorno Karabakh. I also had a good meeting with the Azerbaijani Ambassador in London to discuss relevant issues, before my arrival.
- How do you estimate current level of bilateral relationship between Azerbaijan and United Kingdom ?
- Relations between Great Britain and Azerbaijan are excellent. We have just celebrated Her Majesty the Queen’s Birthday Party; and as I said in my speech, the UK is the largest foreign investor in Azerbaijan, the top destination for Azerbaijani students overseas and the partner of choice in the strategically important energy sector. So relations are excellent and we are working to develop them even further, particularly through supporting Azerbaijan’s policy of economic diversification, by getting more British companies working with Azerbaijan.
- It is already long years that the British Council in Azerbaijan has been promoting British culture in Azerbaijan and at the same time implementing joint cultural projects with Azeri partnerships. As ambassador what is your opinion about cultural connection between two countries?
- I think it’s extremely important. The relation between any two countries exists on all kinds of levels – between the rulers and governments of the countries, through political and diplomatic relations, between the business sectors in each country, through commercial relations and trade, and then between the people and societies and institutions in each country, which is what you might call in the broadest sense cultural relations. The two countries have a long history of connections and involvement and exchanges, but in my view the cultural connection between Azerbaijan and the UK has never been stronger. There are many reasons. It’s partly based on education; many Azerbaijani students are choosing to study for higher education in the UK, whether on state scholarships or on their own, and this interchange of students means that a young generation in Azerbaijan has the chance to see the UK with their own eyes, and understand more of the way that the UK works and is – and at the same tie, these Azerbaijani students are – each and every one of them – effective ‘ambassadors’ for their country. There’s a strong current of interest in the arts between the UK and Azerbaijan; the British Council, as the UK’s principal national agency for cultural relations abroad, plays an important role here. It’s their role ‘to build trust and respect and understanding between people and societies worldwide, through the exchange of knowledge, ideas and experience’ – and I think they have good prospects and opportunities for this work here in Baku. I’ve been following with interest and admiration, for instance, the progress of the co-operation on theatre between the British Council and the Ministry of Culture, and we hope to see a flowering of British Theatre here later this year. The British Council is also co-operating with different institutions here on capacity-building training for film script-writers, for DJ and VJs (leading up to a big party in summer), and on curating; then there’s the British Film Festival, and a major concert performance in March – details still under wraps, but don’t miss it. And I hope you also haven’t missed the astonishing Tony Cragg exhibition organised by and on show at the Heydar Aliyev Centre – a magnificent exhibition by a leading British sculptor, and a collection of works which really suits that beautiful building.
The other area of exchanges at the people-to-people level which can really make a difference to how people see each other is sport – and this we also count as cultural relations. It’s maybe too early in the day for me to say anything about the World Cup – but sport is a powerful force for influence and engagement. I believe that the Baku 2015 European Games are going to bring a lot of attention and excitement and focus on this country, and think that this is a generational opportunity for this country. I hope that the same magic Olympics effect which transformed my country throughout 2012 and beyond will also work for Azerbaijan.
- What else must be done to develop these relations?
I’m pleased to see how much is known about Britain here in Azerbaijan. We recently celebrated the 450th anniversary of the birth of William Shakespeare, and I saw some of the performances put on by schools (see for example the competition entry from School 189: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIjXNVul-4I). I wish I could say that there were higher levels of general awareness in the UK of what is Azerbaijan today; I hope that together we can support initiatives which build understanding in the UK about Azerbaijan. The Eurovision Song Contest did much in this regard; the European Games in 2015 will do more; arts initiatives such as that run by Buta Arts in London over the autumn season have a role to play; university co-operation and shared research is important; successful feature films can be very influential; and every student who goes to the UK carries his or her culture there. Cultural relations is about establishing goodwill; it’s long-term work, and there are many players.
- Does your Embassy show interest to this kind of co-operation?
- Indeed we do. The way this works in the UK is that we don’t have an Embassy Cultural Department; the British Council has this role, and the British Council director is our cultural attaché. The British Council is a separate organisation, but works in close co-operation with the Embassy. This way of working has the advantage of making it plain that our promotion of cultural links does not have The Embassy supports the activities of the British Council; we attend events, open exhibitions, sponsor the British Film festival, and do everything we can to encourage greater cultural co-operation between our countries.
- Have you travelled to any places of interest, to regions during your stay in Azerbaijan?
- I’ve already been to Nakhchivan, Ganja, Quba, Qusar and Lahic. I’ve enjoyed these trips and the opportunity to see more of Azerbaijan’s natural beauty. I’m looking forward to travelling around more of Azerbaijan soon. I think the time you have been living in Azerbaijan gives you the opportunity to choose similar and distinctive features among people.
- How do you feel in Azerbaijan and what impressions created Azeri people in your mind?
- I feel very good in Azerbaijan. Fundamentally, I believe that people across the world are the same. They have the same desires, ambitions and instincts and co-operation across cultures is a natural thing. So I’ve found myself welcomed in Azerbaijan. Everybody is very hospitable and friendly and I already feel at home.
- You are representing the great country as Ambassador. Because of your position you may have very little free time. In spite of that could you find time to go to our theatres, operas and concerts?
- I do have a busy schedule, but I always try to make time for cultural entertainment. Azerbaijani theatre, opera and ballet are very famous of high quality. The last performance we saw as Fikret Amirov’s ballet, “1001 Nights”, which we enjoye a great deal. I’ve been a particular admirer of the marvellous Azerbaijani opera singer Fidan Hajiyeva; I was very pleased when she agreed to sing the national anthems at our Queen’s Birthday Party.
- What can you say about the relations in the sector of tourism between two countries? How do you see the prospects in this sector?
- Tourism is a very important sector. It is a big part of the UK’s economy and we are very pleased that the UK and London in particular are such popular destinations for Azerbaijanis to visit. There is also great potential for tourism in Azerbaijan. Icheri Sheher is a wonderful treasure. The Baku boulevard is the heartbeat of the city. The ski resort in Shadag is top quality and I have heard very good things about the new golf resort in Quba. So I am sure there is a lot that visitors to Azerbaijan could enjoy. One potential obstacle is the visa regime, which does not help attract tourists. Some changes here would help boost tourism.
- Do you like our national cuisine?
- Very much. Azerbaijani cuisine is a treasure of your intangible cultural heritage – with so many delicious dishes to savour. I’m a big fan of Qutab, which I can’t get enough of. I also like Dolma and Pilauf, but there is so much to enjoy in Azerbaijani cuisine that I am always keen to discover new dishes. The natural produce in Azerbaijan is also very tasty – particularly the cucumbers, tomatoes and carrots. So trying everything, but not putting on too much weight is one of my constant challenges!
(medeniyyet.az)
Bakudaily.az
