Matthew Bryza: Heydar Aliyev’s oil and gas strategy strengthened Azerbaijan's independence

One of the factors influencing the strengthening of Azerbaijan’s independence is the rapid revival of the country’s oil and gas sector, thanks to Heydar Aliyev, international expert, board member of the Jamestown Foundation, and former US Ambassador to Azerbaijan, Matthew Bryza, told Report.

According to him, the matter is about attracting funds for the transformation of the economy and raising the standard of living at the expense of the oil and gas strategy.

“The period when the National Leader came to power was very complicated. First of all, it should be noted that the first Karabakh war was ongoing. Besides, with the collapse of the system created by the Soviet regime, there was a decline in the oil and gas sector. Not every leader can prove himself in such conditions. However, Aliyev thought, as few leaders in the region could think: if you want to restore the economic power of the country, you have to attract foreign investment, more precisely, companies with high-risk tolerance for that period,” Bryza said.

According to him, Heydar Aliyev formed a strategy that allowed him to invite companies from Türkiye, Russia, the US, Iran, and the UK, and using it, he introduced a balanced state policy in which Azerbaijan would establish good relations with all these countries.

“The second important point, to which the National Leader paid attention, was the creation of pipelines invested by foreign companies for exporting oil and gas. All this required strong strategic vision and courage. Aliyev opposed many states that wanted to privatize Azerbaijan’s oil and gas resources and took a step that no one expected. He sought support from countries interested in the development of oil and gas fields and used these resources for the independence and unification of his country. I think that this is a heritage that every Azerbaijani should be proud of,” Matthew Bryza told Report.