PRESENT DAY

Present position in Europe & The World

Azerbaijan is currently a unitary semi-presidential republic. The country is a member state of the Council of Europe , the OSCE and the NATO Partnership for Peace (PfP). The PfP is aimed at creating trust between NATO and other states in Europe and the former Soviet Union. Currently, there are 22 states that are members, including Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan is one of the six independent Turkic states it is also an active member of the Turkic Council and the TÜKSOY community. Additionally, Azerbaijan has diplomatic relations with 158 countries and holds membership in 38 international organisations. Furthermore, it is one of the founding members of GUAM , the Commonwealth of Independent Sates (CIS) and Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.

A member of the United Nations since 1992, Azerbaijan was elected to membership in the newly established Human Rights Council by the United Nations General Assembly on 9 May 2006. The term of office began on 19 June 2006. Azerbaijan is also a member state of the Non-Aligned Movement, holds observer status in World Trade Organization and is a correspondent at the International Telecommunication Union.

The Constitution of Azerbaijan does not declare an official religion, and all major political forces in the country are secularist. However, the majority of people and some opposition movements adhere to Shia Islam. See the demographics page for more on religion.

Azerbaijan has a high level of human development which ranks on par with most Eastern European countries. Moreover, it has a high rate of economic development and literacy, as well as a low rate of unemployment. See statistics here.