Azerbaijan has been a member in the United Nations since March 2, 1992, after the UN General Assembly admitted Azerbaijan at its 46th session. The Permanent Mission of the Republic of Azerbaijan was opened in New York City in May 1992. On October 29, 1991, soon after gaining independence from the Soviet Union, Azerbaijan applied to the UN General Assembly for joining the organization. Azerbaijan was elected as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for the term of 2012–2013. Through the UN, Azerbaijan has reached out to the international community, especially Europe. Azerbaijan strengthened its relations with the UN by cooperating with UN agencies and bodies such as International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the World Food Programme, and the financial institutions of the UN.
History
UN and Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict
Azerbaijan used the platform of the United Nations to draw attention to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, to provide the international community with comprehensive information in order to shape an objective public opinion, to use the United Nations potential for peaceful settlement of the conflict. During 1992-1993 the UN Security Council adopted four resolutions (822, 853, 874 and 884) and made six statements of the UNSC President on the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict. They confirmed the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, condemned the occupation of the Nagorno-Karabakh region, demanded the immediate cease-fire, suspension of hostilities and withdrawal of all occupying forces from the territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The Armenian side partially complied with some of the demands of the Security Council and has totally ignored the demand to withdraw its forces from all occupied territories. Expressing a deep concern on the humanitarian situation in Azerbaijan continued deteriorating extensively, and the number of refugees and internally displaced persons (IDP) in Azerbaijan, which exceeded 1 million, the UN General Assembly adopted resolution "Emergency international assistance to refugees and displaced persons in Azerbaijan" (A/RES/48/114) at the 85th plenary meeting in 1993. "During the period of 1992 to 1996 the UN Secretary-General and the Security Council President made several statements on the conflict confirming the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Republic of Azerbaijan and supporting the OSCE Minsk Group’s efforts towards its peaceful settlement. The UN General Assembly in its resolution "Cooperation between United Nations and Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)" reaffirmed territorial integrity of Azerbaijan ("the conflict in and around the Nagorno-Karabakh region of the Republic of Azerbaijan")". In 1994 the UN Secretary-General B.Butros Ghali visited Baku. This meeting had a great significance in developing the relations between Azerbaijan and the UN. Being closely informed about the socio-political devastating consequences and economic losses as a result of Armenia's aggression against Azerbaijan, the UN Secretary-General took the decision to strengthen support and engagement of the UN agencies and institutions to resolve existing troubles and problems.
Past UN and Azerbaijan Relations
"The first United Nations office in Azerbaijan opened in November 1992 in the Respublica Hotel in Baku. This integrated office housed international staff from the UN Secretariat and the UN Development Programme (UNDP) as well as a few national staff. By the end of 1993, it was relocated to the current UN Office, which was generously donated by the Government of Azerbaijan. Shortly after, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Programme (WFP) opened their offices at the same location".
Within a few years, the UN expanded to include the UN Department of Humanitarian Affairs, UN Population Fund, World Health Organization, International Labour Organization, Food and Agriculture Organization, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, International Fund for Agricultural Development and UN Joint Programme on AIDS many of which are still present in Azerbaijan in 2017.
In 2000, the Government of Azerbaijan began to cooperate on the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and partnered with the UN Agencies in the fight against poverty. As a result, poverty has been reduced in the last 25 years dramatically. "The efforts of the Government and the UN have also translated into an improved Human Development Index (HDI) in Azerbaijan, which has increased by 30 per cent between 1995 and 2015. Azerbaijan’s gross national income (GNI) per capita increased by approximately 87.8 per cent between 1990 and 2015".