Today, the First Vice-President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Mehriban Aliyeva, addressed the plenary meeting of the jubilee 10th Russian-Azerbaijan Interregional Forum held in Moscow.
Welcoming the forum participants, on behalf of the Azerbaijani delegation, she expressed gratitude to the Chairman of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, Valentina Matvienko, for her participation in this forum, as well as for her good attitude to Azerbaijan, where, according to the country's first vice president, she is well-known as a sincere and reliable friend.
“I want to express my deep gratitude to the leadership of the Russian Federation, personally to President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin for the invitation to visit your country on an official visit, as well as for giving me the highest award - the Order of Friendship. It is a great honor for me to receive this order personally from the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin. I regard this award as another symbol of friendly, good-neighborly relations based on mutual respect between Russia and Azerbaijan,” Mehriban Aliyeva emphasized.
The First Vice President of Azerbaijan noted that inter-regional cooperation, which is an important component of bilateral relations, is actively developing.
"Azerbaijan maintains economic ties with more than 70 constituent entities of the Russian Federation. The holding of inter-regional forums has become a good tradition and plays an important role in expanding inter-regional ties. The participation of the two states in the opening of the previous forum in September last year in Baku indicates the understanding of the inter-regional cooperation importance at the highest level,” she said.
Noting that in the framework of the current forum, detailed discussions were held on the prospects for bilateral cooperation in the areas of digitalization, agriculture, tourism, humanitarian field, Mehriban Aliyeva expressed confidence that, as in previous years, the results of this forum would make a significant contribution to strengthening of the bilateral relations.
"Azerbaijan and Russia are linked by centuries-old friendship, good neighborliness and mutual respect. Thanks to political will, joint efforts of the presidents of Russia and Azerbaijan, our cooperation so far has acquired the character of a strategic partnership. Close friendly relations, mutual visits, regular meetings of the heads of state give special dynamics to the development of relations as in a bilateral format and within the framework of international organizations. It is encouraging that the multivector partnership between our countries covers all spheres. A solid bilateral legal framework has been created. More than 200 documents have been signed. Intergovernmental and inter-parliamentary working groups make a significant contribution to the development of relations,” Mehriban Aliyeva said.
According to her, one of the main directions of bilateral cooperation is trade relations. "Russia is one of the main partners of Azerbaijan, it ranks first in the import of our non-oil products. Comprehensive measures have been taken to develop and diversify the growing turnover of goods. Azerbaijan opened its first trade representative abroad in the Russian Federation. Azerbaijan-Russia and Russia-Azerbaijan Business Councils were created and successfully operate. Export missions of our manufacturers to various regions are being organized,” Mehriban Aliyeva recalled.
