On November 16, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev hosted a reception in Baku marking the 20th anniversary of the ruling New Azerbaijan Party (YAP).

President Aliyev, who also serves as the chairman of YAP, made the following comments regarding the “Armenian lobby” and Islamophobia in his address according to News.Az.

I have repeatedly said and I want to repeat it in the open that the Armenian lobby is our enemy. This is because Armenia, as a country, is of no importance. In fact, it is a colony, an outpost; a territory governed from abroad which was artificially created in ancient Azerbaijani lands. The Armenian lobby is our main enemy and we are the main enemy for them. In fact, the source of our enmity with them is their enmity with us. Second is anti-Azerbaijani center, structures and circles infected with Islamophobia. Unfortunately, their number is growing all the time.

The growth in their number was manifested during the elections held in some countries. The results of elections make the growth of the rating of Islamophobia forces clear. The young, dynamically developing, independent and modern Muslim country- Azerbaijan - has become a problem for them since it does not fit their stereotypes. Their stereotypes seek to show Muslims in the world as a backward nation and people.