Exploring Azerbaijan's World Classification: First Or Not?

Azerbaijan is a small, landlocked country located in the Caucasus region, straddling the boundary between Eastern Europe and West Asia. It is a transcontinental country with a majority-Turkic and majority-Shia Muslim population. Azerbaijan is considered a developing country and ranks 91st on the Human Development Index.

Azerbaijan was briefly independent from 1918 to 1920 following the collapse of the Russian Empire, but was subsequently incorporated into the Soviet Union for seven decades. In 1991, Azerbaijan emerged as an independent republic following the Soviet collapse.

Azerbaijan's economy is heavily based on oil and other energy exports. The country is considered an upper-middle-income nation with a high level of economic development and literacy. However, Azerbaijan has struggled to move to a market economy, and its government has come under increasing criticism over its human rights record and charges of corruption.

Azerbaijan has been ruled by the Aliyev political family and the New Azerbaijan Party since 1993. The country is a unitary semi-presidential republic.

Azerbaijan's history and geography

Azerbaijan is a country in the Caucasus region, situated at the juncture of Eastern Europe and West Asia. The country's geography is dominated by three physical features: the Caspian Sea to the east, the Greater Caucasus mountain range to the north, and extensive flatlands in the centre. Azerbaijan's landscape is characterised by a wide variety of terrain, from lowlands to highlands, with nearly half the country considered mountainous. The country's highest peak is Mount Bazardüzü, which rises to 4,466 metres above sea level.

The history of Azerbaijan dates back to ancient times, with the establishment of the entity of Caucasian Albania on its soil. The territory that is now Azerbaijan was ruled by various Persian empires until the 19th century, when it became part of Qajar Iran. After the Russo-Persian wars of the 19th century, Qajar Iran ceded its Caucasian territories, including Azerbaijan, to the Russian Empire. In 1918, the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic was established, becoming the first secular democratic Muslim-majority state. However, in 1920, the country was invaded by Soviet forces and incorporated into the Soviet Union as the Azerbaijan SSR. Azerbaijan regained its independence in 1991 following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Since then, the country has been marked by hostile relations with neighbouring Armenia and the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Azerbaijan's economy and natural resources

Azerbaijan's economy is highly dependent on its oil and gas exports, which account for roughly 47.8% of its GDP and over 92.5% of its export revenue. The country has large agricultural basins, with about 54.9% of its land being agricultural. The government is working to diversify the economy away from hydrocarbons, with a focus on the green energy, agriculture, logistics, tourism, and ICT sectors.

Azerbaijan has a complex landscape structure with snowy peaks, high mountains, foothill fertile soils, and wide plains. This has resulted in a variety of natural conditions, climates, soil-vegetation, and water resources. The country has rich mining resources, with oil and gas being the most valuable. The Absheron Peninsula, especially, is one of the world's oldest oil-producing regions, with oil extraction dating back to the VII-VI centuries BC. Other mining resources include shale, peat, iron, aluminium, chromite, gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, cobalt, and molybdenum ore.

Azerbaijan also has a diverse range of non-metallic mining resources, including rock salt, gypsum, anhydrite, bentonite clays, and construction materials. The country has a total of 8,350 streams, with the Kura River being the longest at 1,515 km. The Kura and Aras rivers are the major rivers, running through the Kura-Aras lowland. Azerbaijan also has several islands along the Caspian Sea, mostly located in the Baku Archipelago.

The country is home to a wide variety of flora and fauna. Its flora consists of over 4,500 species of higher plants, with 66% of the species growing in the Caucasus region being found in Azerbaijan. The country's fauna includes 106 species of mammals, 97 species of fish, 363 species of birds, 10 species of amphibians, and 52 species of reptiles.

The government of Azerbaijan has taken measures to preserve the environment, with the number of protected areas doubling since 2001. The government has also set up seven large reserves and increased the budget for environmental protection.

Azerbaijan's government and politics

Azerbaijan is a unitary semi-presidential republic with a unicameral National Assembly. The country's constitution states that it is a presidential republic with three branches of power: executive, legislative, and judicial. The executive power is held by the president, who is elected for a seven-year term by direct elections, and the prime minister. The president does not have the right to dissolve the National Assembly but has the right to veto its decisions. The legislative power is held by the National Assembly and the Supreme National Assembly in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. The judicial power is vested in the Constitutional Court, Supreme Court, and the Economic Court. The president nominates the judges in these courts.

Azerbaijan's government functions as an authoritarian regime in practice. The country has been ruled by the Aliyev political family and the New Azerbaijan Party (YAP) since 1993. The government has been accused of authoritarianism, worsening the country's human rights record, and increasing restrictions on civil liberties, particularly on press freedom and political repression. The country is categorised as "not free" by Freedom House, which ranked it 7/100 on the Global Freedom Score in 2024.

Azerbaijan's military and security

The Azerbaijani Armed Forces have approximately 85,000 ground force troops, with an additional 15,000 paramilitary forces. There are also 300,000 former service personnel who have had military service in the last 15 years. The Land Forces consist of five army corps, and the Air and Air Defence Force has around 106 aircraft and 35 helicopters. The Navy has about 2,200 personnel.

The Azerbaijani Armed Forces have a military budget of $3.77 billion and have been undergoing extensive modernisation and capacity expansion programs. The country has been trying to develop a professional, well-trained, and mobile military, with the military budget increasing from $300 million in 2005 to $2.46 billion in 2009. Azerbaijan has been accused of committing war crimes against Armenian soldiers and civilians during the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

The Ministry of Defence Industry of Azerbaijan supervises the design, manufacturing, regulation, and maintenance of military equipment. The country has signed numerous contracts to strengthen its armed forces and has a cooperative relationship with NATO, sending troops to Kosovo and Afghanistan.

The Azerbaijani military was established in 1918, when the Armed Forces of the Republic of Azerbaijan were created. The modern Azerbaijani army dates back to the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, which was the first secular democratic Muslim-majority state.

Azerbaijan's culture and society

Azerbaijan's population is predominantly ethnic Azerbaijani, a group that combines Iranian, Turkic, and Caucasian elements. The official language is Azerbaijani, a Turkic language, although Russian and Armenian are also widely spoken. While the majority of the population is nominally Muslim, the country is officially secular, and all major political forces are secular.

Azerbaijani society is marked by a blend of traditions and modernization. The people of its remoter areas retain many distinctive folk traditions, but modernization has led to industrialization, the development of power resources, and the growth of cities, where more than half the population now lives.

Azerbaijan's location at a geographic crossroads has made it a centre for craft art, and the country has longstanding traditions in music, dance, and literature. The country also claims to be one of the earliest nations to experiment with cinematography.

Azerbaijan's cuisine uses an abundance of seasonal vegetables and greens, with fresh herbs playing a prominent role. Saffron-rice plov is considered the national dish, and black tea is the national beverage.

Azerbaijan has a strong sporting culture, with freestyle wrestling traditionally considered the national sport. Other popular sports include football, chess, and backgammon.

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