There are days of great significance in the fortune of the Azerbaijani people, which paved the way for important beginnings and determined its future. The most important of such days is June 15 - National Salvation Day, written in golden letters in our history. National Salvation Day is not just an ordinary calendar holiday for the Azerbaijani people, it is a day of great social, political and historical significance. June 15 is the true date of our nation’s salvation. The creator of this history is Heydar Aliyev, who played an exceptional role in preserving, strengthening and developing of independence of Azerbaijan, always relying on his people.

At the end of the 20th century, Azerbaijan took the historical opportunity to regain independence, and after a short time faced the threat of losing it again. The crisis of power in the country reached its culminating point in June 1993, the republic was engulfed in chaos and anarchy. The confrontation, which escalated into a civil war, directly targeted not only our state independence, but also our national existence. Thus, the years 1991-1993 are remembered in the modern history of our country as a period of chaos and lawlessness. And all this was caused by the then leadership of the Republic of Azerbaijan, persons without leadership abilities, who were unable to assess political events, foresee the future and were unable to find a way out even in an ordinary situation. The government failed to properly assess the events, lost its authority among the people day by day, and could not draw correct conclusions from the ongoing processes.
 
The continued occupation of the Azerbaijani lands by the armed forces of Armenia, the gradual escalation of the political situation and the social condition of the Azerbaijani people that was deteriorating every passing day have brought about a need for a leader, who would save the country from these troubles and lead them. All citizens were convinced that Heydar Aliyev was the only person capable of leading the country that recently regained its independence out of the difficult and intolerable situation. Actually, it was the voice of the heart of the people. The people intended to decide their future by uniting closely around Heydar Aliyev.

Therefore, on June 9, 1993, the great leader Heydar Aliyev returned to Baku, responding to the people’s call, and saved the country from devastating disasters, where more terrible events than the fate of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic were expected. That day, in the true sense of the word, was a turning point in the fate of the country - an important step taken towards great salvation.

On June 15, 1993, Heydar Aliyev was elected the Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Azerbaijan. Despite the great risk, the national leader bravely took the mission of saving people. Thus, the tension and confrontation that lasted for many years subsided, and our Republic was secured from the threat of civil war and a split in the society. Thanks to the tireless activity of Heydar Aliyev, Azerbaijan, which faced the dilemma of "to be or not to be", was transformed into a powerful state that year and started to look to the future confidently. On October 3, 1993, the national leader was elected the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan with an absolute majority of votes.  

Today, the triumph of the ideology of national salvation is reflected in the sustainable development of our independent Republic, and the international reputation of Azerbaijan is becoming more excellent.  The political and socio-economic development observed in the country after the great leader Heydar Aliyev’s return to power in the country has played a decisive role in strengthening our state, pushing for closer integration with the civilized world, and building a modernized society that ensured the strategic interests of our people. Thus, this important historical day is imprinted in the memory of the people as the Day of National Salvation and is celebrated as an official holiday by the resolution of the Parliament of the Republic of Azerbaijan on June 27, 1997.    

As a result of the urgent socio-economic, political and moral measures implemented by the great leader Heydar Aliyev, on the one hand, important steps were taken regarding the formation of the National Army, the regular Army capable of protecting the national interests of Azerbaijan, and defending our lands, on the other hand, the ceasefire was achieved in May 1994 with the deployment of all political and diplomatic tools.  The vital importance of the ceasefire concluded that after this agreement, the integration of our country into the world community was accelerated, and international agreements were reached, which made it possible to enter the world market by effectively using its economic potential. Taking advantage of the relative stability within the country, as well as the growing confidence and interest in Azerbaijan in the world, the signing and implementation of the "Contract of the Century" in September 1994 was an obvious manifestation of the implementation of the oil strategy that was developed by the great leader Heydar Aliyev and formed the basis of the economic development concept of independent Azerbaijan. Under the leadership of Heydar Aliyev, our republic became an active participant and initiator of global projects such as the restoration of the ancient Silk Road, the construction of Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan, Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum oil and gas pipelines.

As a result of the deliberate policy of the national leader, the Constitution was adopted in November 1995, which forms the basis of a democratic, legal state. Thus, the formation of the normative-legal framework for carrying out more large-scale reforms in the country was started.    

The determination of the national leader kindled enthusiasm in the people and restored our confidence. The date of June 15 is not only the day of salvation of our statehood. This history also determined the today and tomorrow of Azerbaijan.

Recommended literature:

1. Qurtuluş / tərt.: A. Ə. Babayev, H. Babayev.- Bakı: Milli Məclisin nəşri, 1998.- 462 s
2. Səmədov, Abutalıb Qənbər oğlu. Azərbaycanın qurtuluş tarixi / A. Q. Səmədov ; elmi red. Ə. M. Həsənov. II cild : Azərbaycanda vətəndaş müharibəsi. - Bakı : OSKAR NPM, 2004. - 376,[16] s. :
3. Mahmudov, Yaqub Mikayıl oğlu. Azərbaycan tarixində Heydər Əliyev şəxsiyyəti / Y. M. Mahmudov ; elmi red. Ə. M. Həsənov. - Bakı : Təhsil, 2002. - 328,[40] s.
4. Ağamirzəyev, Fəxrəddin. Dönüşdən qurtuluşa / F. Ağamirzəyev ; rus dilinə tərc.: N. Bənnayeva, O. Ağamirzəyev ; ing. dilinə tərc. R. Həsənli ; red. T. Aydınoğlu. - Bakı : Adiloğlu, 2012. - 168 s. ; [26] s.
5. Гейдар Алиев - всегда впереди эпохи: сборник / под общ. ред. Г. Х. Оруджева; ред. Л. Сулайманова.- Баку: Апострофф, 2014.- 176 с.
6. Алибейли, Гюльрух Сабир кызы. Опередившие время / Г. С. Алибейли; ред. С. Гейдарова; Союз Писателей Азербайджана.- Баку: Letterpress, 2012.- 184 с.
7. Махмудов, Ягуб Микаил оглы. Победное шествие идей Гейдара Алиева / Я. М. Махмудов; пер. с англ. Э. Лятифовой; науч. ред. А. М. Гасанов; ред.: Е. Х. Гезалова, Н. Мамедова, Г. Талыбова.- Баку: Təhsil, 2012.- 680 с.
8. Андриянов, Виктор Иванович. Гейдар Алиев / В. И. Андриянов, Г. Ф. Мираламов. - М. : Молодая гвардия, 2006. - 502 с.
9. Akhundova, Elmira. Return / E. Akhundova; trans. from russian by: G. Butchard, M. J. Moore; ed.: G. Butchard, K. Rzayeva.- Baku: TEAS Press, 2017.- 663 p.