Thread by @DrAlakbarov

Azerbaijan's former President Ayaz Mutallibov died in Baku.

Ayaz Mutallibov in a nutshell:

* Born on May 12, 1938, in Baku to the family of a physician and later World War II veteran
* In 1964, became the director of the Baku Refrigerator Factory
* In 1979, became Minister of Light Industry of Azerbaijan SSR

* In 1989, appointed as the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Azerbaijan SSR
* In 1990, while in Moscow, appointed as the First Secretary of the Azerbaijan Communist Party. Later that year he became the first President of Azerbaijan SSR

* In 1991, Mutallibov dissolves the Communist Party of Azerbaijan and proposes constitutional changes for direct nationwide elections of president.

Then he became an elected a president in a single-candidate nationwide election.

* In 1992, after Khojaly massacre, under pressure from Azerbaijan Popular Front due to mismanagement in defense of Khojaly and safety of its inhabitants, Mutallibov was forced to submit his resignation

* Mutallibov was in exile in Moscow from May 1992 until July 2012.

In July 2012, Mutallibov returned from exile with the permission of Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev.

Hobbies and interests:

Loved jazz. Huge fan of a volleyball in his early years.

For very long time, the Kremlin considered Mutalibov as a potential Russia-friendly successor to Azerbaijan.

However, Mutallibov abolished his political ambitions after 2011.