President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso and
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev have discussed issues of strategic
significance.
Barroso said that EU supports the reforms set out by Aliyev, APA reports.
He expressed satisfaction with Azerbaijan's attitude towards the
Eastern Partnership program and said that democracy, supremacy of law
and respect for human rights are an important aspect of Azerbaijani-EU
ties.
Barroso said that the talks on the new associative agreement have
started. The main goal is to improve ties and bring Azerbaijan closer
to the European market. There are talks on simplifying the visa
regime.
The EU official said that Azerbaijan is a reliable partner, in terms
of energy cooperation, and is an important exporter and transit
country of energy resources.
Barroso said that the memorandum on the South Energy Corridor to the
European markets for Azerbaijan. The official emphasized that
Azerbaijan is participating in the peacekeeping mission in
Afghanistan, Iraq and Kosovo.
He expressed concern with poor progress in settling the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Barroso urged the sides to put all the
necessary efforts to achieve peace. Noting the need to continue the
work of the OSCE MG, Barroso said that EU will assist in the peaceful
process.
