The rank of Colonel General is considered the highest military and special rank in the power structures of the Republic of Azerbaijan, and this status is granted to officials holding positions of particular importance in the state security, defense, and law enforcement systems. This rank is primarily held by the ministers of defense, internal affairs, and emergency situations, as well as the heads of special services, the Prosecutor General, and individuals holding high posts in the security bloc.
According to the decree signed by President Ilham Aliyev, Shahin Baghirov was today awarded the highest special rank of "Colonel General of the Customs Service."
This has increased the number of individuals holding the rank of Colonel General in Azerbaijan to 22.
Modern.az presents the following list of individuals who currently hold, or have held and retired in various years, the rank of Colonel General:
1. Zakir Hasanov - Minister of Defense
2. Beyler Eyyubov - Head of the Presidential Secretariat
3. Ramil Usubov - Secretary of the Security Council of Azerbaijan
4. Karim Valiyev - Chief of General Staff, First Deputy Minister of Defense
5. Ali Naghiyev - Head of the State Security Service
6. Vilayat Eyvazov - Minister of Internal Affairs
7. Kamaladdin Heydarov - Minister of Emergency Situations
8. Elchin Guliyev - Head of the State Border Service
9. Madat Guliyev - Deputy Secretary of the Security Council of Azerbaijan
10. Fikrat Mammadov – Judge of the Constitutional Court, former Minister of Justice, First Class Justice Advisor
11. Karam Mustafayev - Former Commander of the Combined Arms Army
12. Vagif Akhundov - Former Head of the Special State Protection Service
13. Safar Mehdiyev - Former Chairman of the State Customs Committee
14. Zakir Garalov - Former Prosecutor General, First Class State Justice Advisor
15. Najmaddin Sadigov - Former Chief of General Staff of the Armed Forces
16. Safar Abiyev - Ex-Minister of Defense
17. Aydin Aliyev - Former Chairman of the State Customs Committee
18. Namig Abbasov - Former Minister of National Security
19. Fazil Mammadov - Former Minister of Taxes (First Class State Tax Service Advisor)
20. Tofig Agahuseynov - Veteran of the Great Patriotic War, former Chairman of the Republican Veterans Organization
21. Hikmat Mirzayev - Deputy Minister of Defense - Commander of the Land Forces, Hero of the Patriotic War.
22. Shahin Baghirov - Chairman of the State Customs Committee, full cavalier of the "For Service to the Fatherland" order.
