He was Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan under Heydar Aliyev from March 1998 until October 1999 when he was replaced by Vilayat Guliyev.

From 1985 on, he worked at the Department of Arabic studies at the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences.

[1] In 1992, Zulfugarov started working at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan.

[4] During his term as Minister of Foreign Affairs, Zulfugarov signed a number of important state documents including the Weapons of mass destruction (WMD) Counter Proliferation Agreement with the United States, as a result of which the US Department of Defense in partnership with US Customs Service trained and equipped the Azerbaijani counterparts in techniques preventing, deterring and investigating incidents related to proliferation of WMDs (nuclear, chemical and biological weapons).

[6] Zulfugarov is often credited for his extensive work on Karabakh problem, peacemaking initiatives and restoration of territorial integrity of Azerbaijan Republic.