Andrey Blagodyrenko: Half-hour speech of President Aliyev in fluent English and his communication skills impressed us

"Azerbaijan is the undeniable leader among the former Soviet republics in promoting its image on the international arena. Eurovision, Formula 1 championships, international conferences and festivals have built the face of your country. Economic opportunities, ideas and skills of people enable you to organize any event at the highest international level. The Congress organized by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and AZERTAC was another confirmation of this," said Director of Multimedia Centers Directorate of Russia Today Andrey Blagodyrenko in an interview with AZERTAC.

He emphasized that President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev made an impressive speech at the opening of the Fifth World Congress of News Agencies in Baku. "Mr. Aliyev opened the Congress of the News Agencies. Nearly a half-hour speech of President Aliyev in fluent English, his communication skills and the fact that the head of state met with the Congress participants, of course, made a strong impression, I think, not only on me, but all participants," he said.

Blagodyrenko also touched upon the cooperation with the Azerbaijani media. He highlighted the success of Sputnik Azerbaijan, which is a part of Sputnik multimedia group of Russia Today. “Staff members of the multimedia department of Sputnik Azerbaijan are citizens of Azerbaijan,” said Blagodyrenko, adding that it will be good if they are more integrated into the national media environment. “Our nearest plans include cooperation with the Heydar Aliyev Foundation," he said.

“Baku is a beautiful, modern city, which connects the East and West, the past and the future,” Blagodyrenko said, adding that he would like to see many Russian tourists here.