Dear Mr. President,

On my own behalf and on behalf of the Azerbaijani people I send you and through you all the people of your country my heartfelt congratulations on the occasion of the national holiday of the United States of America – the Independence Day.

We attach great importance to the relations with the United States of America. From this perspective, the successful development and continued expansion of our relations in political, economic and humanitarian spheres are reassuring.

Today, Azerbaijan and the United States are linked together by a strategic partnership in several areas. We intend to continue to pursue our joint efforts in the field of energy security and fight against terror and to contribute to stability in the hottest spots around the world.

The attention of the United States to our region as a whole, its support for peace and calm are very important to us. As a result of Armenia's aggressive policy against Azerbaijan, our territorial integrity was violated, our lands occupied and more than a million of our compatriots driven out of their homes. We have great hopes for the efforts the United States as a country co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group and engaged in a peacekeeping mission and you personally have made towards a speedy and fair settlement of the conflict by peaceful means in line with international law.

On such a momentous day I wish you, Mr. President, good health and every success, and peace and prosperity to the friendly people of America.

Sincerely,

Ilham Aliyev
President of the Republic of Azerbaijan

Baku, 22 June 2012