Baku, Vilnius mull expansion of bilateral ties

/By AzerNews/

By Sara Rajabova

The expansion of bilateral ties between Azerbaijan and Lithuania has been discussed during Azerbaijani defense minister’s visit to Vilnius.

Zakir Hasanov met Lithuania’ Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevicius on July 2, AzerTac news agency reported.

Hasanov provided an insight into the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which emerged in 1988 over Armenia’s territorial claims against Azerbaijan.

He further hailed Azerbaijani-Lithuanian cooperation, saying the expansion of bilateral relations is in the best interests of the two countries.

"We are confident that the consultations between the two countries and expansion of cooperation will contribute to the strengthening of peace and security in the Eurasian region," added Hasanov.

The sides condemned international terrorism, all kinds of extremism, aggressive separatism and other threats to international security and stability, noting the need to intensify international efforts in the fight against them.

Prior to the meeting, Hasanov laid a wreath at the independence monument commemorating those who died in the Lithuanian independence struggle in 1991.

Earlier, Hasanov met his Lithuanian counterpart Juozas Olekas. They discussed issues on regional security, development of Armed Forces, boosting prospects for military cooperation between the two countries.

Lithuania recognized Azerbaijan’s independence on December 21, 1991. Diplomatic relations between two countries were established on November, 1992. Lithuanian embassy was opened in Azerbaijan in April 2007. The Embassy of Azerbaijan was opened in Lithuania in September 2007.