Azerbaijan, or as it goes by its official name the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a country that is located at the crossroads of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. This is a unitary semi-presidential republic and one of the six independent Turkic states. The republic proclaimed its independence from the Russian Empire back in 1918 and has managed to maintain its sovereignty since.
Since this country is located at a crossroad between two continents. It has a very important geopolitical location. Azerbaijan is bordered with the Russian Republic of Dagestan to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia and Turkey to the west, Iran to the south, and the Caspian Sea to the east. An interesting fact about Azerbaijan is that even though 97% of the population are Muslims, the country’s Constitution does not include any official religion, which is not the case with most countries around the world.
Azerbaijan is a developing country that ranks 87th on the Human Development Index. The current party in rule has been in power since 1993, but it has been accused of authoritarian leadership, censorship, and other activities that deteriorated the country’s human rights record. Hence, civil freedom has been restricted, especially when it comes to the press.