After Azerbaijan was occupied by the Red Army and became a part of the Soviet Union on 28 April, 1920 as the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic (Azerbaijan SSR), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was abolished and was replaced by People's Foreign Affairs Commissariat (PFAC). The People's Foreign Affairs Commissariat, had little power because Azerbaijan was no longer independent and followed Soviet foreign policy. However, the Soviet government allowed the People's Foreign Affairs Commissariat of Azerbaijan to conduct certain ties with foreign countries.