BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 28. The Baku Network Research and Analysis Public Union held a meeting with students at the Azerbaijan University of Culture and Arts under the project "Supporting increased vigilance against harmful foreign influences and fake news," supported by the State Support Agency for Non-Governmental Organizations of Azerbaijan.
Sadagat Aliyeva, the university’s Vice-Rector for Scientific and Creative Affairs, opened the event and shared her thoughts on the significance of the meeting.
In his remarks, Deputy Director of the Trend News Agency, Sahil Karimli, said that the primary objective of the meeting is to enhance vigilance and alertness in countering harmful external influences. According to him, Azerbaijan is also subject to various ideological influences, biased stances, and "fake news."
Karimli noted that one of the main goals of such campaigns is to disrupt national solidarity within society and weaken the unity established in the country, thereby achieving specific political objectives. He emphasized that all segments of society, especially the youth, must be informed about these processes and possess the ability to critically evaluate the information being spread.
"The unity and solidarity present within Azerbaijani society, along with the immunity developed against external ideological influences, prevent these circles from achieving their goals," Karimli stated. He recalled that during the early years of Azerbaijan's independence, a period marked by Armenia’s policy of occupation and the violation of the country’s territorial integrity, Azerbaijan also faced harmful external influences. According to Karimli, even during the 44-day Second Karabakh War, as Azerbaijan sought to restore its territorial integrity and sovereignty through its own strength, a biased and hostile stance was observed from certain foreign circles.
He noted that, during that period, the unity and national solidarity of the Azerbaijani people played a crucial role in thwarting such attempts. Stating that the state’s resolute policy was also effective in this regard, S. Karimli emphasized that Azerbaijan did not retreat in the face of such pressures; rather, as President Ilham Aliyev has noted, it pursued an "offensive diplomacy."
Karimli added that because Azerbaijan pursues an independent and decisive policy based on its national interests, it is expected that harmful influences directed at the country will continue. In his view, while these attempts target all segments of society, particular attention is focused on the youth. It was noted that these influences are aimed at weakening the institution of the family, eroding national and moral values, and causing degradation.
Elchin Alioghlu, Chairman of the "Baku Network" Research and Analysis Public Union and an Honored Journalist, drew attention in his remarks to the use of artificial intelligence technologies in the creation and dissemination of fake news.
He stated that artificial intelligence is being used to generate false information, which is then spread across various platforms and employed against Azerbaijan. According to Alioghlu, online media resources, funded and controlled by foreign entities, as well as social networks such as Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram, are being utilized to disseminate such content.
Alioghlu further noted that, following the recent adoption of a standardized school uniform policy, smear campaigns have been launched against Azerbaijan regarding the issue of head coverings, with attempts being made to politicize the subject.
He noted that harmful influences directed against Azerbaijan are not limited to Western circles or various international centers that harbor ill will toward the country; such influences have also been observed originating from certain neighboring states in the region. Alioghlu alleged that Iran has maintained a hostile stance toward Azerbaijan ever since the early years of the latter's independence.
According to him, while Azerbaijan’s good faith and efforts to preserve neighborly relations have occasionally helped to reduce tensions, certain circles within Iran have persisted in conducting campaigns against Azerbaijan, interfering in its internal affairs, and attempting to influence developments within the country.
Nevertheless, Alioghlu emphasized that there is a strong sense of solidarity within Azerbaijani society, with the public standing united against such attempts. He noted that efforts by various circles, think tanks, and groups in this regard have been successfully thwarted thus far, and will continue to be thwarted in the future.
The event highlighted the nature of harmful external influences and fake news, the methods by which they are spread, and the importance of young people acting with greater caution and responsibility within the information environment.
