SOCIETY 367 / 2015

DIPLOMATIE
ASERBAIDSCHAN
»Azerbaijan can
be seen as a
model for other
Muslim societies
to follow.
«
Galib
Israfilov
We fully support Ukraine’s territorial integrity
within the internationally recognised borders of
Ukraine. But this conflict was not only created
due to the Ukrainian-Russian relations, there are
many other factors, which have destabilized the
situation in the Ukraine. Within the Ukraine the
lack of an effective government and leadership
contributed to this situation. We want to stop
the bloodshed because finding an agreement on
the cease-fire would afterwards bring the sides
around a table to negotiate the peace. In the case
of Ukraine there is no resolution of the UN Security
Council because of the divergent views of the
major veto-powers.
CURRICULUM
VITAE
H.E. Galib Israfilov was born
on 9 May 1975 in Azerbaijan.
He studied International
Relations at Baku State
University and Georgetown
University/Washington
D.C. He joined the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs in 1995.
During his career he was
appointed Attaché at the
Department of International
Organizations, Third and
Second Secretary at the
Embassy in Vienna, Second
and First Secretary at the
Permanent Mission to the
UN in New York, Head of Division
and Deputy Director
of the Department of Security
Affairs, Counsellor at
the Embassy in Washington
D.C. Since 2011 he has been
Ambassador to Austria, Slovakia
and Slovenia as well as
Permanent Representative
to international organizations
based in Vienna. H.E.
Galib Israfilov is married and
has three sons.
when it pursues its policy with the neighbours,
then there are good chances to succeed.
Since you organize a lot of classical concerts
in Vienna, has the classical music a special meaning
in Azerbaijan?
The Azerbaijani culture is rich in music, not
only the classical but also the modern and folk
types of music. We were the first country in the
Muslim world to stage opera. Our famous composer
Üzeyir Hacibayov composed the first opera,
“Leyli and Madjnun”. In the beginning of the
twentieth century, in the conservative Muslim
society only men were allowed to play because
women could not show their faces. Two men performed
this play, which is about the love story between
a man and a woman. Classical music is a
very rich part of our national culture. In Vienna
we have established the Azerbaijani Cultural Center,
which also is a part of the Embassy and works
very dynamically to increase the awareness of the
Austrian society about the culture of Azerbaijan.
In autumn 2015 we plan to have Azerbaijani cultural
days in Austria. We want to present our music,
but also literature, architecture, poetry and
applied arts.
What can you tell me about the history of the
Embassy building?
The Embassy is located in the Hans Moser Villa.
We have purchased the building back in 2001 and
since then it serves representation purposes. We
commemorated last year the fiftieth anniversary
of the death of Hans Moser with an exhibition. We
opened the doors of the villa in the thirteenth district
for the people.
Do you have a personal motto?
To be modest in everything!
•
Do you think that the EU with the sanctions
took the right step?
I am not sure that the sanctions imposed by
the EU and the United States help to resolve the
conflict. The objective is to stabilize the situation
in Ukraine. In the meantime we also see that the
architecture of security in the Eurasian continent
is damaged. We need to restore this security architecture.
Are you optimistic in that sense?
I will respond with the example of Azerbaijan:
It has developed good, stable and predictable relations
with Russia, Ukraine, Iran, Israel, Turkey,
the US and the countries of the EU. If a country
has pragmatic assessments of its ambitions and
also tries to ensure that its interests are not hurt
Galib Israfilov talks
with SOCIETY publisher
Gertrud Tauchhammer
SOCIETY 1_2015 | 49