Three Colors of a Great History: What the Journey of the Azerbaijani Tricolor Tells Us

On holidays, the Azerbaijani tricolor traditionally adorns our streets and homes. On such days, one feels especially clearly: the national flag has had a remarkable destiny. It has been raised over the buildings of the young republic, at the UN headquarters, at Olympic arenas, and in liberated Shusha. On the eve of the Day of the State Flag of Azerbaijan, let us recall the most memorable events of this history, writes the newspaper "Kaspi."

On November 9, 1918, the government of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic approved the blue-red-green flag with a white crescent and an eight-pointed star as the state flag. The blue color was associated with the Turkic roots of the people, the red with the aspiration toward a modern democratic society, and the green with Islamic civilization.

On May 3, 1920, after the fall of the ADR, the tricolor was lowered from the parliament building. For seven decades it remained a symbol of our independence, and in 1988 it reappeared at rallies in Baku. On November 17, 1990, on the initiative of Heydar Aliyev, the national flag was adopted in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, and on February 5, 1991, throughout all of Azerbaijan. On October 18, the country restored its state independence. And in 2009, by decree of President Ilham Aliyev, the Day of the State Flag was established — November 9.

At the UN Headquarters

On March 2, 1992, Azerbaijan was admitted to the UN, and our tricolor was raised in front of the organization's headquarters in New York. Thus, after decades of Soviet rule, Azerbaijan took its rightful place among the nations of the world.

On January 25, 2001, the flag of Azerbaijan was raised in front of the Council of Europe headquarters in Strasbourg. President Heydar Aliyev attended the ceremony. The republic became the 43rd member of the organization. And in 2011, the UN General Assembly elected Azerbaijan as a non-permanent member of the Security Council for 2012-2013. A total of 155 states voted for our country's candidacy. Twenty years after joining the UN, the republic entered the Security Council.

When Our Anthem Sounds

At the Olympics in Atlanta in 1996, the Azerbaijani team competed for the first time as a team of an independent state. Wrestler Namig Abdullayev brought home silver — the republic's first Olympic medal. Four years later in Sydney, he became champion. But the first gold medal for Azerbaijan was won by the celebrated athlete Zemfira Meftakhetdinova. It was there, in Australia, at the winners' ceremony that the State Anthem of independent Azerbaijan was heard for the first time.

Then came gold medals in Athens,