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Azerbaijani people should be proud of the fact that they have an independent, strong and a forward-looking country, Rob Sobhani, director general of Caspian Group Holdings, told Trend.

“I have been visiting Azerbaijan since 1990 when it was a new country not even born as independent. And today, Azerbaijan and the people of Azerbaijan should be proud of the fact that it is an independent, strong, forward-looking country and this is the result of the leadership first, of National Leader Heydar Aliyev and then Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev,” he said.

The greatest example is that there are so many countries in the world, but Donald Trump, a new US president, gets a call and talks to the president of Azerbaijan, noted Sobhani.

This shows that Azerbaijan is significant, Azerbaijan matters and that Azerbaijan will continue to be an important country in international affairs, he added.

“If you look at the world today, you will find that one of the biggest areas of conflict is in the name of religion and people are killing each other in the name of religion,” he said.

Sobhani pointed out that in this context, Azerbaijan is a model for the world, where Christians, Jews, Muslims, Bahais. Hindus, Zoroastrians – everybody live in peace with each other.

“But more importantly, the government in the person of President Aliyev and before him Heydar Aliyev has been supporting and championing this religious tolerance. This is unique in the world for a country such as Azerbaijan that is overwhelmingly Muslim,” he said. “So it should be a point of pride for the people of Azerbaijan that they have a country with such religious tolerance.”

Further, the expert said that the investments made by Azerbaijan under the leadership of President Aliyev in building a sporting culture, sporting infrastructure is a legacy that will last for many generations.

“If you are a young Azerbaijani, then thanks to the president and by the way, I should add, thanks to the First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva as well, you have an access to a volleyball court, a basketball court, a taekwondo facility, then you have the ability to be physically strong, because, when you are physically strong, you are also mentally stronger. And this is at the level of people,” added Sobhani.

There is a very important thing in the world that a young mind thrives and grows in a sound body, he said.

The expert said it is important that the international games are being held in Azerbaijan.

“Sport is a unifier. Sport brings people together, whether it is European Games or the Islamic Solidarity Games. It shows that Azerbaijan is one of the leading countries that is a unifying force,” he added.

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