The Russian-Azerbaijani strategic partnership is based on historical traditions of friendship and mutual respect, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia, Sergey Lavrov, said during a press conference following negotiations with his Azerbaijani counterpart Elmar Mammadyarov, a correspondent of Vestnik Kavkaza reports.
Russian-Azerbaijani strategic partnership is based on historical traditions of friendship and mutual respect, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia, Sergey Lavrov, said during a press conference following negotiations with his Azerbaijani counterpart Elmar Mammadyarov, a correspondent of Vestnik Kavkaza reports.The head of Russian diplomacy said that Russia appreciates the participation of President Ilham Aliyev in the Victory Parade on May 9. According to him, regular confidential dialogue between the two countries is of great importance. "The bilateral trade between Russia and Azerbaijan has reached an historic high and increased by 12% compared to 2014. The preparations for the sixth Russian-Azerbaijani forum in Ekaterinburg are underway," the minster said.
The head of Russian diplomacy said that Russia appreciates the participation of President Ilham Aliyev in the Victory Parade on May 9. According to him, regular confidential dialogue between the two countries is of great importance. "The bilateral trade between Russia and Azerbaijan has reached an historic high and increased by 12% compared to 2014. The preparations for the sixth Russian-Azerbaijani forum in Ekaterinburg are underway," the minster said.
As Lavrov stressed, Russia is considering the possibility of reaching an agreement on Karabakh, which is one of the priorities of Russia’s foreign policy, and supports a balanced position of Azerbaijan on the Ukrainian question.
The Russian Foreign Minister also wished Azerbaijan success in hosting the First European Games. "I am confident that the show will be spectacular," he said.
Elmar Mammadyarov, in his turn, said that he shared moderate optimism on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. "Yesterday and today we discussed the opportunities for progress in the conflict piece by piece. No one denies that the conflict has been protracted for too long. The matter here rests only in translating this understanding into the language of agreements. The parties have all the groundwork, and I look at the negotiation process with increasing optimism," the minister said.
The head of Azerbaijani diplomacy said that the cooperation between Russia and Azerbaijan is now comprehensive. Addressing Caspian issues, Mammadyarov assured that Baku will make every effort to ensure that the final document is prepared in the most complete form to the summit in Kazakhstan in 2016.
The Azerbaijani Minister also touched on the results of the Eastern Partnership summit in Riga. "I'll tell you about the trend. Three out of the six countries identified their course within the association agreement with the EU, two more countries are integrated into the Eurasian Union. And there is a third group – Azerbaijan – which is building relations at the bilateral level," Mammadyarov said.
