"POTENTIAL FOR COOPERATION IS GREAT"

On 19 September, Derbent city tumultuously celebrated its anniversary. On the eve of this event, an R+ correspondent visited this ancient Russian city as part of a delegation of journalists at the invitation of celebration organizers. The description of how rapidly the city is changing deserves a standalone story. I will say one thing. This holiday should mark the beginning of a long-awaited return of Derbent into the ranks of the world's greatest cities. All of its inhabitants deserve that.

The head of the Republic of Dagestan, Ramazan Gadzhimura-dovich Abdulatipov, speaks to R+ regarding plans to transform the city and its historical ties.

- In the run-up to anniversary celebrations, extensive landscaping work was done in Derbent with the assistance of the Azerbaijani government. The Azerbaijani community of the city was also quite active. How would you describe the current state of Dagestani-Azerbaijani relations?

- More than a thousand years Derbent was considered the largest city of the Caucasus. I think that the real role of Derbent in the historical and cultural field of Russia has not yet been established. In preparation for celebrating the 5,000th anniversary of the settlement of Derbent and the 2000th anniversary of the city, we repeatedly stressed that Derbent fortifications were built not only by townspeople. In particular, it is believed that the current version of the Naryn-Kala citadel was built under Khosrow I Anushirvan (Shahinshah of Iran from 531 to 579 - author) and Khosrow II (Shahinshah of Iran from 591 to 628), but this was all built by masters, the ancestors of our peoples, representatives of the peoples of the Caucasus. Are there many cities in the world like Derbent, which are mentioned in the Bible and the Koran? This is a strong historical bond. These are our deep roots.

Modern Dagestan is very closely connected with the family of Heydar Aliyev. First, Heydar Aliyev himself was always very close to us. In fact, one of the streets in Derbent is named after him. In the most difficult years of the Great Patriotic War, Aziz Aliyev, Heydar Aliyev's father-in-law, was the head of Dagestan. President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev continues the tradition of good neighbourly relations. The Azerbaijani side was also involved in preparations for anniversary events. Thanks to the instructions issued by Ilham Aliyev, we have fully refurbished the street named after Heydar Aliyev. He personally followed this process.

Of course, the Azerbaijanis living in Dagestan, in Derbent and in Derbent region are also doing a lot to restore the run-down economy. It has been in a poor state in recent years. I think that in the near future we will restore not only Derbent but also Derbent region. This will also benefit the well-being and security of the Azerbaijanis, Russian citizens living in the Republic of Dagestan.

- The celebrations of the anniversary of Derbent, as you say, is only a beginning of positive changes that will occur in the city in the next few years. Measures on the improvement of Derbent will be extended until 2018. How would you assess the work already done in this city? Have all your plans been implemented?

- First of all, we do this for the people, not only for the anniversary. I repeat that the city was in an extremely poor state. Therefore, a lot had to be done in a short time. For example, the house of Peter the Great which was found among old ruins. We had to buy all houses in the neighbourhood and now this museum ensemble has been rebuilt. Fourteen streets of the city have been completely renovated with all utilities and infrastructure. The Naryn-Kala fortress and an ancient defensive wall have also been restored. This restoration work alone took more than half a billion rubles. The area around the city was excavated by different quarries and we are bringing things back to order now.

Yet, there is still a huge amount of work to do. Therefore, President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin has extended commemorative events until 2018. For example, we are now discussing the possibility of building a resort town of 120,000-150,000 people 15 kilometers south of Derbent. It will have modern hotels, roads and an airport. Russian Prime Minister Dmitriy Medvedev supported the idea, saying that if there were normal conditions in Derbent, tourists would be happy to fly here for a weekend.

I also hope that the projects initiated on the instructions of President Ilham Aliyev will also be completed. There is a lot to do, but a lot has already been done. Very much depends on the people of Derbent. They have to get really involved in the process.

- In 2013, you stated that you aimed to "take Dagestan to a new level from the Middle Ages it had been driven into in the next five years." Almost half of the way is now behind. Do you think you will cope with this task? What are the achievements over these years, what makes feel proud and what, in your opinion, went wrong?

- A lot has changed in the republic since 2003. Dagestan of early 2013 and of 2015 are completely different republics, both in terms of appearance and domestic situation. Our main goal was to ensure the security of our people. I knock on wood when telling reporters that we lived 2014 and eight months of 2015 without acts of terror. However, there certain threats do remain.

My second objective was to switch to a model of development that would allow us to give up subsidies from the federal budget. And in terms of economic development, in particular, industrial development and tax collection, we are now among top five republics of the Russian Federation. I mean the pace of development, while in terms of the volumes we still have to catch up with the leaders. This attests to the positive development dynamics.

The leadership of the country, Vladimir Putin personally, is doing a lot for this. On the President's instruction, the Russian Government has adopted a resolution on accelerated development of the Republic of Dagestan. Just recently, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has signed a program on the socio-economic development of Dagestan until 2025. With this support, we must ensure not only sustainable economic development and security, but also cultural development of the region.

A Museum of world cultures and religions has recently opened in Derbent on my initiative. In Makhachkala recently, we have opened the first theater of poetry in the country, perhaps even beyond. In all our cities and regions, centers of traditional culture of the peoples of Russia have been set up in place of outdated and neglected houses. We are improving education, health, etc. Extensive creative work is under way, and there is still much to do for the good of our homeland, Dagestan.

- The programme on Dagestan extends until 2025 aims to increase the investment attractiveness of the country and create favorable conditions for a further socioeconomic development. At the same time, the economic development of Dagestan is impossible without close cooperation with neighbours, in particular with Azerbaijan. Has this cooperation expanded during your tenure as head of the republic?

- We are neighbours and brothers, and Azerbaijan is a rapidly developing country. It is therefore surprising that Dagestan has not implemented a single joint project with its neighbour. Today, we are cooperating in the landscaping of Derbent. In the future, our cooperation will develop in the fields of economy, culture, education, sports. After the celebration of the anniversary of Derbent, I plan to meet with Ilham Aliyev to discuss the new phase of our multifaceted cooperation. The potential for cooperation between Dagestan as a part of Russia and Azerbaijan as an independent state is enormous but, unfortunately, it is not fully used yet.

- I agree with you. You once said that the leadership of the Republic of Dagestan "is conducting a balanced policy in the matter of national quotas and all ethnic groups are represented in the government of the republic". Is the indigenous Azerbaijani population of Dagestan involved in the political, economic and cultural life of the republic?

- Of course! There is no doubt about that. In fact, this was the case in Dagestan even before I took office. I observe these principles, but I want to draw the attention of some critics that the quality of work does not suffer because we have enough professionals of different nationalities who can be attracted to work in the government - both at the municipal level and republican. In Derbent and Derbent region, all this is taken into account. Here is an example - in the republican government the Minister of State Property is an Azerbaijani. There are Azerbaijani deputies of the National Assembly. Azerbaijanis are very talented and active people, and all these qualities will be used for the benefit of Dagestan and our fraternal relations with Azerbaijan in the future.